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JUST IN: NUC Approves New Varsity For Ebonyi

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JUST IN: NUC Approves New Varsity For Ebonyi

The National Universities Commission has approved the establishment of Ebonyi State University of ICT, Science and Technology, Oferekpe.

Presenting a letter of recognition of the new university to Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, on Thursday, the Executive Secretary of NUC, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, said the institution is now recognised as the 66th state university in Nigeria and the 278th in the Nigerian University System.

He said a copy of the recognition letter would be forwarded to the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, the National Youth Service Corps and the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.

The NUC boss, however, revealed that the university will only commence academic activities after the necessary resource verification.

“We want to say on the part of the Commission, that we are ready and willing to support this young university. However, we need to indicate that giving a recognition letter is not equated with starting or commencement of academic activities. We will still have to undertake what is called resource verification.

“The Commission will visit when the university is ready, it will invite the Commission to go and look at the state of affairs, to look at the infrastructure, to look at the classrooms, look at the library, look at the staffing.

“After that, the Commission will give the go-ahead for the commencement of academic activities. It is pertinent to note that this university becomes the 66th state university,” he said.

“The reason for the establishment of this university is to ramp up the access to quality and affordable tertiary education, particularly for the State indigenes and grant everyone the opportunity to tertiary education in order to address the needed technological manpower requirements of the State in particular and the Nation in general, especially now that the World is fast-changing because of the tech-driven phenomenon,” he said.

Nwifuru added, “The need for adequate funding for sustainability of institutions of this magnitude is never lost on us as a government. And I want to assure you that Ebonyi State, under my leadership will ensure that adequate budgetary provisions, in both capital and recurrent expenditures, are made available on a sustainable basis, in order to guarantee the academic growth, relevance and quality assurance of this nascent institution.

“On the gradual take-off of this university, I want to further inform the Executive Secretary that the State Government has already injected critical mass of funds towards the construction of some strategic buildings on the university campus at Oferekpe, Agbaja, Izzi LGA. As of today, the following structures, like the Senate Building, the Staff Quarters, the Students’ Hostels, the Faculty Buildings, the University Library, etc are at various stages of completion.”

Ebonyi

Ebonyi

On the critical manpower needed to drive the developmental strides of this university, the governor said, ” I am happy to inform the Executive Secretary that the Principal off this have since been appointed by my government. And just last Saturday, I had the honour and privilege to flag off the Ebained State scholarship program, where about 1000 students are already being trained for Master’s and Doctorate degrees in both local and foreign universities.

“It is intended that on graduation, these trained officers shall be injected into the various tertiary institutions in Ebonyi State in order to contribute in building the needed human capital development in the State.”

Education

Education minister Tunji Alausa Decries Proliferation Of Versities, Seeks Improvement Of Existing Ones

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Education minister Tunji Alausa

Education minister Tunji Alausa Decries Proliferation Of Versities, Seeks Improvement Of Existing Ones

Education minister Tunji Alausa decries proliferation of Versities, seeks improvement of existing ones. Mr Alausa said that there was no need to put pressure on the president to establish new universities

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, has hinged the current proliferation of universities on the increasing pressure being mounted by lawmakers.

Mr Alausa spoke at the third edition of the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing in Abuja on Thursday.

The federal government is facing mounting pressure to reform the country’s education sector.

With almost 200 bills pending in the National Assembly for the creation of universities, there is a growing concern that the system is becoming overwhelmed.

Mr Alausa explained that renewing the capacities of existing institutions was more important than establishing new ones.

According to him, there is no need to put pressure on the president to establish new universities.

He said, “We must focus on our capacities. We need to stop this from happening. There’s so much pressure on the president. We have to at least be sensitive to it as well.

“They (lawmakers) are passing a lot of bills. Today I can tell you that there are almost 200 bills in the National Assembly. We can’t continue this. Even though we have a lot of them, the capacity for a university to admit is not there. What we need to do now is to rebuild the capacities so that we can offer more viable courses to our citizens.’’

He added that the enrolment rate was not commensurate with the recent number of universities.

“If you look at the entire enrolment together, the one per cent of private universities account for just 7.5 per cent of total undergraduate enrolment. The total number of undergraduate enrolments today is just about 875,000, which is at least fairly low.

We have universities with less than 1,000 undergraduate students, and there’s this intense demand for more universities to be opened. We have to stop that,” he said.

He added that several key proposals had been put forward to address the challenges facing Nigeria’s education sector.

Speaking on specialised universities, the minister appealed to the institutions to focus on their mandate.

According to him, there is a need to reduce the number of non-technical courses offered in specialised universities and instead make them available in conventional universities.

He also pledged the commitment of the federal government to reducing the number of out-of-school children and creating opportunities for them in tertiary institutions.

On speculation of scrapping the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund), Mr Alausa said the Education Tax Fund would continue indefinitely.

Education minister Tunji Alausa

Education minister Tunji Alausa

“What we now need to do is to begin to open up more resources to develop infrastructure, build engineering workshops and build laboratories in these universities.

We also must recruit international standard teachers so that we can begin to get these universities to deliver high-quality education that will be known throughout the country.

“When it comes to the education tax, I think a tax fund is going to be advanced now because I’ve heard some information in the new tax bill about tax funds being subsidised by the year 2030,” he said.

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Education

NAWOJ: Women Journalists Advocate Continuous Learning For GrowthS

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NAWOJ

NAWOJ: Women Journalists Advocate Continuous Learning For GrowthS

NAWOJ: Women journalists advocate continuous learning for growthS. Ms Kadiri said that the foundation aimed to prevent workplace medical emergencies caused by high BP.

Chairperson of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Lagos Chapter, Adeola Ekine, has said that continuous learning drives growth in journalism.

Ms Ekine stated this in Lagos on Thursday during the commemoration of International Women’s Day.

The IWD 2025 theme is ‘Accelerate Action’, while NAWOJ’s symposium topic was titled ‘Young Women in Journalism: Mentorship, Growth and Breaking the Glass Ceiling.’

According to Ms Ekine, young women must embrace opportunities for self-improvement through training programmes, digital media literacy, investigative journalism, and ethical reporting.

She emphasised that as the media landscape evolves, journalists must stay ahead, ensuring their voices and narratives remain relevant, credible, and impactful.

Ms Ekine added that breaking the glass ceiling requires audacity, resilience, and collective effort.

She urged women to pursue leadership positions, join editorial boards, and take decision-making roles in media organisations.

Director of News at Lagos Television, Abimbola Bello, questioned what actions women should accelerate under the IWD 2025’s theme.

Ms Bello stated that women must accelerate action in various areas and across different initiatives.

She noted that the symposium encouraged women journalists to assess their roles, goals, and priorities.

She said this was a time for women to reflect not only on their jobs but also on nation-building and issues affecting women.

Consultant at J.K.A. Aggey Foundation, Oluseyi Kadiri, said the foundation supports women, girls, and the less privileged.

Ms Kadiri stated that the foundation partnered with NAWOJ to provide medical services for symposium participants.

She said, “We are checking blood pressure (BP) and sugar levels because health is crucial. Women in journalism should know their BP and sugar levels to avoid being overworked without realising the risks.’’

NAWOJ

NAWOJ

Ms Kadiri explained that the foundation aimed to prevent workplace medical emergencies caused by high BP.

She encouraged women journalists to celebrate their achievements and contributions to the media industry.

She advised women to check their BP at least twice a month.

Health Education Officer at Local Action Committee on AIDS (LACA), Ikeja LGA, Rashidat Sanni-Afolabi, urged women journalists to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS.
Ms Sanni-Afolabi said educating women on HIV/AIDS during pregnancy could help prevent mother-to-child transmission.

She noted that while people often dislike taking medication, proper sensitisation and education could improve adherence.

She called on women journalists to prioritise HIV/AIDS stories and increase awareness levels.

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Jigawa Government, Azman University Partner To Enhance Education Development

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Jigawa Government, Azman University Partner To Enhance Education Development

Jigawa government, Azman University partner to enhance education development. Ms Muhktar said, “I assure you that the Jigawa State government will continue to be a valued partner.’’

The Jigawa State government said it will partner with the Azman University to enhance educational opportunities and promote human capital development.

Governor Umar Namadi stated this during a courtesy visit by the Vice-Chancellor, Fatima-Batool Mukhtar, on Thursday in Dutse.

She said the state government would explore areas of collaboration to support innovative learning and sponsor students in specialised programmes to enhance skill development.

The governor said the partnership also focused on computing, data science, aviation management and artificial intelligence (AI).

“I assure you that the Jigawa State government will continue to be a valued partner,” she said.
Mr Namadi highlighted the relevance of the specialised programmes being offered by the university and reaffirmed his commitment to explore opportunities for indigent students.

He said that the introduction of innovative online courses was designed to attract students and scholars to the university.

Earlier, Ms Mukhtar said the institution was committed to quality education, innovation and excellence.

She said the university introduced online learning services, a compulsory e-learning week and the Students’ Consultative Forum, to encourage students engagement in decision-making.

“We have online services that allow students to attend lectures from home, while lecturers can also teach from their homes.

For the students and staff to be familiar with this, we have set aside one week every semester for compulsory e-learning week,” she said.

She also called for more collaboration in computer programming with notable industry players such as Cisco, Huawei and Oracle Academy.

Jigawa

Jigawa

“Your Excellency, Azman University is already gaining strength in computing programmes, and already we have registration with Cisco, Huawei and Oracle Academy. We are certified instructors for Huawei.

“So, we would like to appeal to your excellency to partner with us in your community development projects and skills development for youth for certified courses in computing programmes,” Ms Muktar said.

The VC commended the state government over the 32 per cent budgetary allocation to the education sector and the N3 billion grant to the scholarship board in the 2025 fiscal year.

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