Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Policy Dilemma

President Bola Tinubu’s assent on 16 October 2026 to bills upgrading the Federal Polytechnic, Kaduna, and Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, into universities of technology and vocational studies has renewed debate about the direction of Nigeria’s tertiary education.

The conversions follow similar developments involving the Federal Polytechnic, Nasarawa, now the Federal University of Mining, Engineering and Technology, as well as approvals affecting other polytechnics. Meanwhile, the Federal Government is converting colleges of education into universities of education, with 28 federal colleges reportedly operating dual mandates, awarding both the Nigeria Certificate in Education and Bachelor of Education.

These developments raise a fundamental question: what coherent philosophy guides the expansion and restructuring of tertiary institutions?

On 15 October, the Senate amended the Federal Polytechnic Act to empower polytechnics to award Bachelor of Technology degrees in science, engineering and technology, subject to accreditation by the National Universities Commission and relevant professional bodies. The proposal also revises rectors’ tenure. It still requires concurrence by the House of Representatives and presidential assent.

The initiative seeks to address the longstanding discrimination against Higher National Diploma holders, who have faced restrictions on entry-level placement and career progression in the public service. Unlike the earlier proposal under former Education Minister Adamu Adamu to scrap the HND and make polytechnics subordinate to universities, the new approach would preserve polytechnic identity while expanding degree-awarding powers.

Yet a policy contradiction emerges. Why convert selected polytechnics into universities while empowering the remaining institutions to award degrees? If both pathways serve technological education, what criteria determine which institution should be upgraded and which should retain its existing status?

The same Senate has equally passed bills to establish the Federal University of Agriculture in Orogun, Delta State, and the Federal University of Education in Obudu, Cross River State.Senator Muntari Dandutse said the Obudu proposal would convert the existing Federal College of Education into a university, using its facilities, infrastructure and workforce.

Both bills passed their third reading through voice votes on October 22, 2026, after senators considered and adopted their clauses.

The wider proliferation of specialised universities deepens this dilemma. In 2017, the Federal Government directed specialised universities to restrict programmes to their mandates, including instructing universities of agriculture to discontinue unrelated courses. However, universities are adaptive institutions. Scholars have since explained why institutions expand into new disciplines to attract students, funding and partnerships.

Nigeria’s experience illustrates this pressure. Institutions established for transportation, aviation, agriculture, health or environmental studies may eventually introduce management and social science programmes to remain attractive and financially sustainable. Specialisation can consequently become a label rather than a defining academic practice.

This trend is difficult to reconcile with the Federal Government’s August 2025 announcement of a seven-year moratorium on establishing new federal tertiary institutions. The Education Ministry cited underutilisation, reporting that 199 universities received fewer than 100 applications through JAMB, 34 recorded no applications, and several polytechnics and colleges of education attracted similarly low demand.

Despite these concerns, new specialised institutions have continued to emerge. The challenge, therefore, is not simply establishing universities but ensuring that existing institutions are adequately funded, staffed, relevant and accessible to students.

Specialised universities have legitimate value where national development requires focused expertise, advanced research and strong industry partnerships. However, their establishment should follow credible assessments of workforce demand, regional access, institutional capacity and long-term sustainability. A specialised university must demonstrate why its mandate requires a separate institution rather than a faculty or research centre within an existing university.

The government must also clarify the relationship between polytechnics and universities. Degree-awarding powers should not erase the distinctive practical and vocational training that makes polytechnics valuable. Equally, HND holders deserve fair career progression without unnecessary discrimination based solely on qualification nomenclature

Ultimately, Nigeria needs a consistent national framework defining when institutions should be upgraded, when specialised universities may diversify, and when investment should instead strengthen existing faculties and facilities.

Without such coordination, the country risks expanding institutional numbers without proportionately improving educational quality, employability or skills. More universities and certificates do not automatically translate into better education.

The objective must be a tertiary education system in which institutional status, academic programmes and public investment reflect national priorities, student demand and measurable development needs, not merely changing political or administrative preferences.