Nigeria Ministry of Education so far

The Nigerian Federal Ministry of Education is the government body that directs education in Nigeria . It was established in 1988.

It functions include:

Formulating a national policy on
education. Collecting and collating data for purposes
of educational planning and financing. Maintaining
uniform standards of education throughout the
country.

Controlling the quality of education in the
country through the supervisory role of the Inspectorate Services Department within the Ministry.

Controlling the quality of education in the country through the supervisory role of the Inspectorate Services Department within the Ministry.

Harmonizing educational policies and procedures of all the states of the federation through the instrumentality of the National Council on Education.

Effecting co-operation in educational matters on an international scale.

Developing curricula and syllabuses at the national
level in conjunction with other bodies.

It is located at Block 5A (3rd Floor), Federal Secretariat Complex, Shehu Shagari Way, Central Area, P.M.B. 146, Garki, Abuja, Nigeria, Abuja.

Parastatal Include:
1. National Universities Commission (NUC), Abuja.
2. National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Kaduna.
3. National Commission for Colleges of Education
(NCCE), Abuja.
4. Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC),
Abuja.
5. Controlling National Commission for Nomadic Education, (NCNE), Abuja
6. National Commission for Adult Education Mass Literacy and Non-Formal Education (NMEC), Abuja
7. Nigerian Educational Research Development Council (NERDC), Sheda, FCT.
8. Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Bwari, Abuja.
9. West African Examination Council (WAEC), Lagos.
10. National Examination Council (NECO), Minna, State.
11. National Business and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB).
12.National Institute for Educational Planning & Administration (NIEPA), Ondo.
13. National Teachers Institute (NTI), Kaduna.
14. Nigerian Mathematical Centre (NMC), Sheda, FCT.
15. Nigerian French Language Village (NFLV)Badagry, Lagos.
16. Nigerian Arabic Language Village (NALV) Ngala, Borno.
17. National Institute for Nigerian Languages (NINLAN)Aba, Abia.

18. Education Trust Fund (ETF), Abuja.
19. National Library of (NLN), Abuja.
20. Teachers’ Registration Council of (TRCN), Abuja.
21.Computer Professionals Registration Council of
(CPN), Lagos.
22. Your Guide Towards Nigerian Education

The following people acted as Education Ministers of Nigeria , including Ministers of State for Education:

Aja Nwachukwu (1958 to 1965)

Richard Akinjide (1965 to 1967)
Wenike Briggs (1967 to 1970)

A. Y. Eke (1970 to 1975)

Ahmadu A Alli (1975 to 1978)

G. B. Leton (1978 to 1979)

Sylvester Ugoh (1979 to 1982)

Alhaji B. Usman (1979 to 1982)

Elizabeth Iyase (1979 to 1982)

I. C. Madubuike (1982 to 1983)

L. A. Bamigbaiye (1982 to 1983)

Sunday Afolabi (September to December 1983)

Alhaji Y. Abdullahi (1984 to 1985)

Alhaji Ibrahim (1985)

Jubril Aminu (1985 to 1989)

Babs Fafunwa (1990 to 1992)

Ben Nwabueze (January 1993 to August 1993)
A. I. Imogie (January 1993 to November 1993)
Alhaji Dongodaji (January 1993 to January 1994)

Iyorchia Ayu (January 1994 to February 1995)

Alhaji Wada Nas (January 1995 to February 1995)

M. T. Liman (February 1995 to December 1997)

Iyabo Anisulowo (February 1997 to December
1997)

Alhaji D. Birmah (December 1997 to June 1998)

A. N. Achunine (December 1997 to June 1998)
Olaiya Oni (August 1998 to May 1999)

Alhaji S. Saadu (August 1998 to May 1999)

Tunde Adeniran (June 1999 to January 2001)

Alhaji Lawam Batagarawa (June 1999 to 2001)

Babalola Borishade (February 2001 to June 2003)

Alhaji Bello Usman (February 2001 to June 2003)

F. N. C. Osuji (July 2003 to February 2005)

Hajia Bintu Musa (July 2003 to June 2005)

Chinwe Obaji (June 2005 to June 2006)

Halima Tayo Alao (June 2005 to 2006)

Grace Ogwuche (February 2006 to June 2006)

Oby Ezekwesili (June 2006 to April 2007)

Sayadi Abba Ruma (June 2006 to April 2007)

Adewunmi Abitoye (June 2006 to May 2007)

Igwe Aja Nwachukwu (June 2007 to December 2008)

Jerry Agada (June 2007 to December 2008)

Hajia Aishatu Jibril Dukku (June 2007 - ?)
Sam Egwu (December 2008 to March 2010)

Ruqqayat Rufai (April 2010 – September 2013)

Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau (? - Present)

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11 Myths of Autism

People with autism don’t want friends. If someone in your class has autism, she probably struggles with social skills, which may make it difficult to interact with peers.

1. She might seem shy or unfriendly, but that’s just because she is unable communicate her desire for relationships the same way you do.

2. People with autism can’t feel or express any emotion— happy or sad. Autism doesn’t make an individual unable to feel the emotions you feel, it just makes the person communicate emotions (and perceive your expressions) in different ways.

3. People with autism can’t understand the emotions of others. Autism often affects an individual’s ability to understand unspoken interpersonal communication, so someone with autism might not detect sadness based solely on one’s body language or sarcasm in one’s tone of voice.

But, when emotions are communicated more directly, people with autism are much more likely to feel empathy and compassion for others.

4. People with autism are intellectually disabled. Often times, autism brings with it just as many exceptional abilities as limitations. Many people with autism have normal to high IQs and some may excel at math, music or another pursuit.

5. People with autism are just like Dustin Hoffman’s character in Rain Man. Autism is a spectrum disorder, meaning its characteristics vary significantly from
person to person. Knowing one person with autism means just that—knowing one person with autism.

His or her capabilities and limitations are no indication of the capabilities and limitations of another person with autism.

6. People who display qualities that may be typical of a person with autism are just odd and will grow out of it. Autism stems from biological conditions that affect brain development and, for many individuals, is a life long condition.

7. People with autism will have autism forever. Recent research has shown that children with autism can make enough improvement after intensive early intervention to “test out” of the autism diagnosis. This is more evidence for the importance of addressing autism when the first signs appear.

8. Autism is just a brain disorder. Research has shown that many people with autism also have gastro- intestinal disorders, food sensitivities, and many allergies.

9. Autism is caused by bad parenting. In the 1950s, a theory called the “refrigerator mother hypothesis” arose suggesting that autism was caused by mothers who lacked emotional warmth. This has long been disproved.

10. The prevalence of autism has been steadily increasing for the last 40 years. The rate of autism has increased by 600% in the last 20 years. In 1975, an estimated 1 in 1,500 had autism. In 2009, an estimated 1 in 110 had an autism spectrum disorder.

11. Therapies for people with autism are covered by insurance. Most insurance companies exclude autism from the coverage plan and only half of the 50 states currently require coverage for treatments of autism
spectrum disorders.

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OAU starts Online Distance Learning

The Obafemi Awolowo University’s Centre for Distance Learning (OAUCDL) has matriculated its pioneer set of students for the Online Distance Learning Programme. A statement from the centre indicated that the event was held at the Oduduwa Hall of the OAU Main Campus.

The programme is accredited by the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) and allows students to receive their lectures online using a customised study tablet (Vigitab).

The Vice Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Professor Bamitale Omole, told the matriculating students that: “You have the singular honour of being the first set of students in our eLearning programme, the first of its type in Nigeria.

“Your distant learning mode of admission does not in any way imply inferiority in status, compared to our conventional students, either in terms of lecture delivery or the certificates you will receive. Our university guards jealously the integrity of its degrees and diplomas
whether obtained in the conventional or distance learning mode.

Hence your various curricula have gone
through the usual high standards of excellence of the University Senate for which Obafemi Awolowo University
is well known.” The Centre for Distance Learning Director, Professor Bode Asubiojo, said: “This development is the first of its kind in Nigeria and we are pleased with it. We have replicated the classroom experience on a tablet device for students. Students can receive lectures, submit assignments, participate in forums, take quizzes, and even rewind their lecturers, all from the comfort of their homes, offices or wherever they may be in Nigeria or abroad.”

The eLearning solution is powered by a Learning Management System (VigiLearn) that allows students to receive lectures, submit assignments, relate with peers, participate in group discussions and get graded without being physically within the four walls of a lecture room.

“Our primary charge at the centre is to provide quality education to the teeming Nigerian youths who possess the prerequisite qualifications for entry to Nigerian universities but are denied admission owing to inadequate facilities on campus and the working class who are desirous of pursuing undergraduate and post graduate programmes whilst still retaining their jobs,”

Professor Asubiojo said. Courses on offer for the Online Distance Learning Programme are B.Sc. Accounting and Bachelor of Nursing Science. The Centre plans to include more courses in the future.

For more info visit: www.oaucdl.edu.ng

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Nigeria made it to 2014 Hult Prize of $1,000,000

NIGERIA’S flag bearer in the sixth Annual Hult Prize, the American University of Nigeria has advanced to the regional finals of the competition, which winners will receive $1,000,000 in startup funding.

This year there were more than 4, 000
applications from among which the AUN team, which comprises of Hafsat Adamu, Blessing Douglas, and Lucy Okonkwo was offered a place to compete. AUN’s team is the only one from Nigeria to advance to the Dubai stage of the
competition.

“Part of what qualified us is our university’s development mission and commitment to fostering development in our region and the continent, together with the students’ strong, longstanding record of academic excellence and
community engagement,” said AUN’s President Margee Ensign, An instructor in Business & Entrepreneurship, Fardeen Dodo, who coached last year’s team, said the competition will enrich the students’
college experience.

“Besides the competition, students will benefit from several workshops, networking, and entrepreneurial learning events run by a number of professionals and trail-blazing global experts, including Stuart Fleming of Enviroserve, Garett
Awad of the Scholl Centre of Entrepreneurship, Ali Edrissi of JP Morgan (UK), and Khaled Gazawi, the CEO of Grameen-Jameel.”

Dodo who added that the step attained so far by the students was “…demonstration of how far our students are ready to go, to action up our vision of development and commitment to addressing the longstanding social challenges that confront Nigeria and Africa at large.”

In partnership with President Bill Clinton and the Clinton Global Initiative, the innovative programme aims to solve the planet’s most pressing challenges.

Student teams compete in six cities around the world for a chance to secure the $1m prize money meant to launch a sustainable social venture.

The 2015 Hult Prize will focus on building
start-ups that provide sustainable, high quality, and early education solutions to 10 million children under the age of six in urban slums and beyond by 2020.

This year’s challenge was selected and set by former American president, Bill Clinton, who said, “The Hult Prize is about
more than the solution to the problem; it’s about how the world has to work in the 21st century.”

In his remarks, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and founder of the Hult Prize Foundation, Ahmad Ashkar said, “Servicing the world’s poorest through profitable and sustainable enterprise is not just good for the world; it’s great business.

Our pioneering platform builds
ecosystems by leveraging crowd and we
couldn’t be happier that the American University of Nigeria will be joining our mission with their participation in the 6th annual Hult Prize.”

The Hult Prize gives entrepreneurs from around the world a platform to innovate and revolutionize the way society thinks about servicing the poor.

Each team selected was
chosen from more than 20, 000 applications received from over 500 colleges and universities in over 150 countries. The Hult Prize regional final competitions will take place on March 13
and 14, 2015, in Boston, San Francisco, London, Dubai, and Shanghai. The AUN Hult team will compete in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

Following the regional finals, one winning team from each host city will move into a summer business incubator, where participants will receive mentorship, advisory, and strategic planning training as they create prototypes and set-up to launch their new social business. 

A final round of competition will be hosted by the Clinton Global Initiative at its annual meeting in September this year, where CGI delegates will select a winning team, and the prize to be personally awarded by Clinton, who described, the Hult Prize as “a wonderful example of the creative cooperation needed to build a world with shared opportunity, shared responsibility, and shared prosperity, and each year I look forward to seeing the many outstanding ideas the competition produces.”

To learn more, visit www.hultprize.org

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UNILAG wins debating championship tourney

The University of Lagos has emerged winners of the second All Nigerian Universities Debating Championship.

Messrs Nathan Odiase and Temitope Ojelade led the university to victory in the tournament.

The competition, which the university hosted, started on January 24, and ended on January 29, 2015.

The University of Calabar emerged second while the Imo State University came third in the competition, which featured 17 universities.

Speaking at the closing ceremony, the UNILAG Vice- Chancellor, Prof. Rahamon Bello, thanked all the participants for their commitment to excellence..He said, “There are over 200 institutions and for us to have 17 universities shows that you people are the best and I want you to count yourselves lucky.”

Also, the Dean, Students’ Affairs Division, Prof. Tunde Babawale, who expressed joy that UNILAG hosted and won the championship, noted that it provided a platform for UNILAG students to sharpen their skills within the limited available resources.

Similarly, Mr. Victor Onuoha, who represented the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof. Julius Okojie, underscored the importance of the championship.

He also applauded the adjudicators, participating universities and UNILAG for being a wonderful host.

Our Online Learning is qualitative says OAU

After matriculating students into the New Online Distance learning, Authorities of the Obafemi Awolowo University have assured their online distance-learning students of quality academic delivery.

The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Bamitale Omole, gave the assurance during the matriculation of pioneer students of the Online Distance Learning Programme.

The university’s Centre for Distance Learning runs the programme, which at present offers degree courses in Accounting and Nursing. Omole, who urged the students to be committed to
their studies, noted that their certificates would not be inferior to those obtained via the conventional approach.

He said, “You have the singular honour of being the first set of students in our eLearning programme. I congratulate you on being pioneers of the eLearning revolution in the country. “I want to assure you that distant learning mode of
admission does not imply in any way inferiority in status, compared to our conventional students either in terms of lecture delivery or of the certificates you
receive at the end of your programmes.

“Our university guards jealously the integrity of its degrees and diplomas whether obtained in the conventional or distance learning mode. Hence, your
various curricula have gone through the usual high standards of excellence of the university Senate for which OAU is well known.”

The OAUCDL Director, Prof. Bode Asubiojo, also promised that the centre would continue to provide quality education in line with the university’s tradition. Asubiojo said, “Our primary charge at the centre is to provide quality education to the teeming number of Nigerian youths who possess the prerequisite qualifications for entry to universities but are denied admission owing to inadequate facilities on campus.

“It also targets the working class who are desirous of pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate programmes while retaining their jobs. The Online Distance Learning programme allows us to deliver on this objective.” Asubiojo, who said the programme had already received the National Universities Commission’s accreditation, noted that its students use customised study tablets (Vigitabs) for learning.

He added, “This development is the first of its kind in Nigeria and we are pleased with it. We have replicated the classroom experience on a tablet device for
students. For the first time, students can receive lectures, submit assignments, participate in forums, take quizzes and even rewind their lecturers, all from the comfort of their homes, offices or wherever they may be in Nigeria or abroad.”

For more info kindly visit: www.oaucdl.edu.ng

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Nine more Universities on the way says FG

The Federal Government has concluded plans to approve nine more universities. This will bring to 18 the number of universities it had approved in last three years.

The Education Minister, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, who announced this, also stated that the government had earmarked N1.3tn as intervention grant to its universities courtesy of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy Assessment Programme.

Shekarau stated this in Abuja while X-raying the Nigerian Basic Education Sector (2011-2015). The minister said, “If not for technical reason, another nine (9) would have been approved before now.

Soon, we shall sort out all the outstanding issues and they will receive government approval. This will bring to 113 the number of universities in the country and 18 private universities approved in the last three years.”

The minister said that the NEEDS Assessment intervention grant was sequel to several deliberations between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities.

He explained, “We have persistent complaints from our universities about dilapidated laboratories and so on; then the government took the bull by the horn.

President Goodluck Jonathan set up a committee to go round the universities on the platform of NEEDS Assessment which was conducted two years ago.

“At the end of the assessment, the universities came up with a bill of N1.3tn required to address the necessary need in public universities and the government accepted it.

Since the government cannot dish out N1.3tn all at once, there is an agreement between the Federal Government and the leadership of the ASUU that the needs be addressed over a period of five  years with a provision of N220bn every year.”

According to the minister, the NEEDS intervention is in addition to normal budgetary allocations to universities and TETFund interventions, among others.

On the incessant strikes by unions in the tertiary institutions, Shekarau said the Federal Government was trying to address the challenges.

He said, “I think we are making some progress on incessant strikes in the sector. We have succeeded in ensuring we have strike-free sessions in our institutions. We are determined to achieve this and the issue of strike would soon be a forgotten issue.

“This doesn’t mean there won’t be problems. There is hardly any sector where there is no problem but frank and strong discussions can resolve them. It is our hope that exchange of views would help us to be strike-free in this country.”

Courtesy: www.punchng.com

UNIOSUN crisis tears ASUU apart

The crisis between the management and the Governing Council of the Osun State University early February 2015 has caused a sharp division among members of the Academic Staff
Union of Universities in the institution.

The Secretary of ASUU in the university, Mr. Wende Olaosebikan, at a briefing on Monday dissociated the members of the local chapter of ASUU from an earlier press conference addressed by the Chairman of ASUU, Ibadan zone, Prof. Segun Ajiboye

Apart from Olaosebikan, Prof. Ayo Adebooye, and the Financial Secretary of ASUU at UNIOSUN, Mr. Alabi
Banwo, who attended the Monday briefing, expressed dissatisfaction with the zonal coordinator of ASUU.

But the Chairman of the UNIOSUN ASUU, Dr. Seye Abiona, who was absent at the Monday conference, our correspondent gathered, was present when the zonal
coordinator addressed journalists on the crisis.

The secretary of ASUU noted that at the congress of the union held last January 20, its members resolved to be neutral in the crisis rocking the institution.

Olaosebikan said, “We have read with utter disappointment in the newspapers the report of a press conference which was floated by the Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Ibadan Zone, Prof Olusegun Ajiboye on the suspension of the Principal Officers (VC, Registrar and Bursar) of the Osun State University by the Governing
Council.

“Our branch of ASUU dissociates itself from the reported press conference because we had resolved at our meeting l of January 20, 2015 that we would not
take side in the issues concerning the council- administration and the government.

“We are also disappointed that the said press conference on the issues concerning our university was held without any input or clearance from our branch.

“We wish to state that this is not part of ASUU principle. Our branch reserves the right to know whenever the zonal or national body wishes to discuss our university on the pages of newspapers.

“In fact, since our branch congress had not yet reported any matter to the Zonal-ASUU, it has no right to take the matter to the press. Our union is known for thoroughness in dealing with issues and we wish to state that in holding the press conference, the zonal ASUU has violated our right as branch.

“We are dismayed that lecturers who should face the real academic duties are now aligning with political parties and have directly turned the university to a home of partisan politics.

In our opinion, while we lay claim to the fact that all of us are political animals, we must not forget that university is a home  for the production and propagation of knowledge.”

Check ASUU too in LASU this 2015.

Courtesy: www.punching.com

Graduate programme inpetroleum engineering will soon start in UNILAG

UNILAG to commence graduate programme in petroleum engineering in line with the transformation agenda of the Federal Government in area of effective teaching and learning of oil and gas courses, Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) has
reiterated its commitment to ensure a good number of Nigerian universities are upgraded to international standard.

Speaking shortly after a tour of facility at the Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Executive Secretary of the Fund, Mr. Olufemi Ajayi, who led the PTDF inspection team, informed that in an effort to achieve the mandate of the Fund in the area of capacity building, the agency has embarked on human capacity building through institutional upgrade.

The Fund had in 2013 built and handed over a well-equipped structure and facilities worth N800 million to the Chemical Department of UNILAG to enhance teaching and learning and
ensure students in Nigerian universities received world-class training in the oil and gas sector.

The recent visit was to inspect and see if the facilities are being used to achieve the purpose of the Fund.

According to Ajayi: “The essence of the
upgrade is to make the Nigerian universities competitive by providing world class facilities comparable to any tertiary institution anywhere in the world.

We also want to multiply the
number of professionals in the oil and gas sector through the upscaling of Nigerian institutions. So far, these facilities at UNILAG had been replicated in 25 other universities across the country, and we will continue to deliver more.”

“From experience, what we have here is just almost as much as what we have in some of the universities in United Kingdom (UK) and in United States (U.S.) that I have visited, in terms of facilities. If what we have seen here is what is happening in 25 others, it means that PTDF, by extension of the Federal Government, is moving in the right direction.”

He continued: “If oil and gas is the main thing of our economy, if we are investing in chemical and petroleum engineering departments, we are just putting our money where our mouth is. We are doing what we supposed to be doing.

Rather than send students abroad, the training can be done within the shores of Nigeria and students would be able to study in universities here and get the same experience and quality of training.”

Ajayi said that the structures had been put in place to achieve the dream of the President, which is to ensure that Nigeria is one of the 20 most-advanced countries in the world.
“At the end of the day, capacity-building is the first step for any sustainable industrialisation.

If you don’t have manpower, you are just paying lip service to industrialization. As it is, we have taken the first step through the empowerment of all these 26 universities and many more to benefit.

“If all these universities are making active and gainful use of the facilities, you can imagine the spillover effect in the next few years. With this empowerment, the universities will perform maximally in the mandate they have been given
in the area of teaching, research and community service.

“Again, as an agency of government, we have a mandate to increase local content by way of the number of professionals who are involved in production and manufacturing, by way of trying
to encourage the development of local raw materials. So, whatever we produce here in Nigeria, the value that would be added would at least be up to 60 per cent.
“We want the raw materials to be sourced
from our environment, not entirely foreign made.

If we have very virile and effective chemical engineering department in our universities, to produce quality graduates, meaningfully engage in research, when any oil company has challenges, it will be referred to address such challenges rather than going to foreign countries
for solution. Our institutions should be able to address some of those challenges and solve problems that are peculiar to our environment, that is the main objective of this university upgrade.”

Meanwhile, Head, Department of Chemical Engineering, Prof. Adetokunbo Denloye, had announced the willingness of the department to commence graduate courses in Petroleum Engineering.
Denloye, who commended the Fund for its intervention, said with the support of the Fund, all is set for the take-off except for the manpower, which the university is working diligently to achieve.

According to him: “We intend to commence master’s and doctorate programmes in Petroleum Engineering and we require manpower in that department since we have enough members of staff for chemical engineering. We want to encourage our students to come on board. We are in the process of recruiting more members of staff, especially at the higher level, so that we can have someone who can provide academic leadership in the department.

“We are currently in the process. The position has been advertised and right now, we are in the review process and hopefully, before the end of this year, we should be through with that. We
intend to attract the best students and
encourage them to do the master programme and then Ph.D.”, he said.

On the relevance of the course to national
growth, he said: “Chemical Engineering is key, the nation depends mainly on sale of crude oil, what we have not done is to really exploit all the things that come from crude and that is the area which chemical engineering is so versatile.

They add value to crude products. If we have a virile petrochemical industry, it will be yielding significant revenue to the country.”

Please, Increase funds for Scientific Research

THE Federal Government has been urged to
increase funding for scientific research in the
country, to keep pace with advancement in other
parts of the world.

A professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the
University of Abuja, Prof. Joseph Nwafor
Nwabueze stated this at the 12th Inaugural
lecture of the institution titled: “Igwe Na Ndu:
The role of metals in life.”
Prof. Nwabueze implored the government to
stop paying lip services to science and
technology but rather make available special
intervention funds to universities to adequately
equip their basic science departments for
teaching and research.

Nwabueze noted that the state of science
research in Nigeria is deplorable because of lack
of modern research facilities, which he described
as twin problems of lack of infrastructures and
poor funding.

“ Everybody agrees that science primarily is the
bedrock of sustainable development. Scientific
research in Nigeria is being hindered by the twin
problem of infrastructure and poor funding.
“The laboratories are without chemical and
research equipment. Municipal services that are
taken for granted in other climes are lacking.

The lecturer said well-equipped advanced
science laboratories should be established, at
least one in each geopolitical zone which should
have sophisticated research equipment.
Nwabueze commended the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU) for its “sustained
struggle for better funding of the university.

The former deputy vice-chancellor academic,
also cautioned the federal government against
politicising the opening of new federal
universities in the country.
He said if the federal government could not
adequately fund 24 universities, how does it
hope to fund 37.

He maintained that the resources used in
creating the 13 universities should have been
used to expand and adequately fund the existing
ones.

“I do not believe that universities should be
established for political reasons. Why must
there be a university in each state of the
federation, even in those states that hardly fill
their quota in existing federal institutions?” he
said.

According to him the increase in the number of
federal universities has further worsened the
situation of underfunding in the education sector
in the country.

“If this trend is not halted, we may soon be
confronted with demands for the establishment
of a federal university in each of the 774 local
government councils.

Written by Kanayo Umeh

http://m.ngrguardiannews.com

Our VC deserves it !

On the 27th of August 2014, Society of Nigeria Theatre Artists (SONTA) haven got its eyes on some Vice Chancellors of our Universities, noticing them that they have distinguished themselves in the areas of specialization especially in Theatre Practice and have assumed certain Leadership Position and are excelling. Prof. Rahamon Bello - Vice Chancellor University of Lagos Prof. Austin Asagba - Vice Chancellor Western Delta University bagged the "DISTINGUISHED LEADERSHIP AWARDS" at the 27th Annual Convention of SONTA

Theatre Veterans and Academics like Dr. Chris Iyimoga, Prof. Mabel Evwierhoma - Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Abuja were inducted as Fellows of the Society of Nigeria Theatre Artists (SONTA) While : Chief Fred Agbeyegbe bagged "Artistic Excellence Award" Prince Ifeanyi Eke, the Head Trade Logistics Nigeria Limited bagged "Excellence in Leadership Award" Prof. Duro Oni, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Management Service) UNILAG bagged "Award Honors in Creative Arts".

It was made known at the 27th Annual Convention that Theatre Artists have not performed their roles equitably well, in terms of checkmating the kind of Political rascality that we find in Nigeria. We should have the kind of theatre that will interrogate the kind of gap, that we have in our Political System. Photos: www.dailyindependentng.com www.unilag.edu.ng www.Sonta.org