RSITIE VE S C NI O U M NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES COMMISSION L M A I S N S O I I O T N A N T H C E OU VI GHT AND SER MONDAY www.nuc.edu.ng A PUBLICATION OF THE OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY th 0795-3089 14 May, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 20 NUC Holds Retreat for Governing Councils of Federal Universities Honourable Minister of State for Education (HMSE), Prof. Anthony Anwukah (3rd left); Perm. Sec. Arch. Sonny Echono (4th left); Chairman, NUC Board, Prof. Ayo Banjo (1st right); ES, NUC, Prof. Abubakar A. Rasheed (2nd left); Chairman, Committee of Pro-Chancellors (CPC), Prof. Munzali Jibril (1st left) and Chairman of the Occassion, Malam Adamu Fika (2nd right) he National Universities Financial Accounting in represented by the Minister of Commission (NUC), in Nigerian Universities’. State for Education, Prof. Anthony Tconjunction with the Anwukah, noted that with the Committee of Pro-Chancellors The retreat was part of efforts advent of knowledge economy in (CPC) and the Committee of towards ensuring probity, the 21st century, educational Vice-Chancellors (CVC) last accountability and transparency competencies rather than natural Tuesday, organised a 2-day high in all aspects of university resources were responsible for level retreat for Governing governance. national development. Councils of Nigerian federal universities, with the theme Declaring the forum open, the He said that both the developed ‘ E l e m e n t s o f S t a t u t o r y Minister of Education Mal. and developing countries strived to Governance, Procurement and Adamu Adamu who was mobilise education as a key factor in this edition NUC Publishes 2017 Compendium, Nigerian Academy of Edu. Visits NUC, Pg. 8 Statistical Digest on NUS Pg. 6 Seeks Participation in Accreditation EDITORIAL BOARD: Ibrahim Usman Yakasai (Chairman), Mal. Haruna Lawal Ajo (Editor), Miss Bunshak T.S, Yvonne Orekyeh, Nana M. Sani, Udey Felix, Aja-Nwachukwu Samuel, Hadiza Kaigama, Akazue Nony Ebele, Adeleke J. Adeyemi, Sadiq Abubakar Enquiries: [email protected] 14th May, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 20 for economic growth and national development. He said, “Human capital development is essential to the attainment of the goals of the various national and international and the universities have critical roles to play in the development of the critical mass of manpower that drive various national economies”. Mal. Adamu remarked that the Mal. Fika, Prof. Banjo and ES, TETFund, Dr. Abdullahi Baffa Bichi hallmark of university education universities. which was built on excellence, was the academic programmes must be preserved. It behoved the they offered. He decried the He condemned the practice Council and Management of situation where some universities where convocation ceremonies universities to work in harmony to c o m m e n c e d a c a d e m i c which were supposed to be actualise their responsibilities”. programmes without the solemn academic affairs had requisite human and material been turned into rowdy funfairs The Minister further stated that r e s o u r c e s , t h e r e b y , and political rallies as a result of some of the critical issues that circumventing due process in the honourary degree awards. required urgent attention in approval of their programmes. Nigerian universities were those “It is important that we relating to access without He emphasised that it was the consciously remember that a c o m p r o m i s i n g q u a l i t y , responsibility of Governing university ceases to be relevant infrastructure, and facilities, Councils to ensure that academic when it falls short of its tripartite curriculum update, quality programmes were in line with the function of teaching, research assurance, governance and core mandates of the universities, and community service. In all our funding among others. met international standards and dealings as members of the accredited by the NUC, adding Governing Councils and He expressed optimism that the that Governing Councils must Management of universities, the retreat would provide the ensure that academic culture and traditional culture of universities necessary platform for Council, tradition were maintained in Management and government interaction that would facilitate maximum understanding of those challenges and proffer the way forward. He therefore, called on the Chairmen and members of the Governing Councils of Nigerian universities to join hands with the government to transform Nigerian universities to world-class status. Presenting an overview of the NUS, the Chairman, NUC Board, Prof. Ayo Banjo, explained that though the NUS was barely 70 years as compared to other Cross section of Pro-Chancellors and Chairmen of Councils university systems that had been in Page 2 MONDAY BULLETIN A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary 14th May, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 20 NUS. The Chairman noted that the efforts by foreign universities to attract Nigerian students for global recognition with huge financial implications. He emphasised that internationalisation of the NUS lamented the underfunding of university education in Nigeria which had been the bane for low performance, poor quality of teaching and research as well as products. He urged the NUS to think outside the box by engaging Other Pro-Chancellors and Chairmen of Councils in blue chip investments that existence for centuries, it was would contribute to the country’s would be huge sources of necessary to understand that development. internally generated revenues. globally, universities played the s a m e r o l e o f i m p a r t i n g Prof. Banjo charged Nigerian On the retreat, Prof. Banjo said that knowledge and creating new universities on the need to ensure it was focused on training ideas to enhance teaching, that the noble cause of university participants on appropriate research and community service education was maintained by remediation, commending the for nation building. striving for relevance and coordinators for putting finance at recognition through adopting the front burner and called on the He said that from the medieval best practices, as no university university Councils to ensure that era, students had been the could successfully operate the resolutions of the retreat were centrepiece of universities as outside the global system. implemented in the management they were the agents of of the institutions’ resources. He development. He said that the The NUC Board Chairman, urged the Councils and university essence of university education therefore, seize the opportunity Senates to work harmoniously to was to advance the intellectual to commended NUC for drawing produce quality graduates that development of the student on up appropriate criteria for would place Nigeria on the world critical thinking other than just ranking in a bid to promote map. acquiring knowledge, which global competitiveness in the principle, he said, led to the industrial revolution in Europe. The Chairman, reminded that an ideal university consisted of a community of thinkers who worked for the good of humanity and therefore, a graduate who could not think intellectually was not worthy of a degree. He said that the soul of a university relied on the map it imprinted on its students, adding that the government allowed the university system to be relevant based on what the universities Cross section of Vice-Chancellors Page 3 MONDAY BULLETIN A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary 14th May, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 20 receptive to new ideas and to actively engage the Resource persons with the hope that at the end, they would go back to their respective institutions better equipped with the proper leadership skills to move the universities forward, which in turn, would move the Country to greater heights Prof. Rasheed use the opportunity to present some very profound seminal documents on the Other Vice-Chancellors at the event university system, the first in the West Africa sub region Welcoming the participants, the for the universities, thereby, Executive Secretary, NUC, Prof. making it difficult to generate In his goodwill message, the Abubakar Rasheed, expressed original knowledge, build Chairman, CPC, Professor delight at the commencement of character, drive innovation and Munzali Jibril expressed the the long-awaited retreat, stating contribute significantly towards Committee’s gratitude to the that it was coming at a time when national development. Commission for taking the the Commission was embarking onerous task of hosting such an on a bold mission of reforming He attributed many of the important forum. He prayed that the Nigerian Universities manifest problems of Nigerian the knotty issues such as the Commission (NUS). He said that universities to the crisis in their ambiguity surrounding the the retreat had to its credit, a crop governance and leadership, procurement process and who had of distinguished resource which he said, had frustrated full authority over it, would be persons that would help to equip e f f e c t i v e a n d e f f i c i e n t clarified. participants with the necessary management of the institutions’ knowledge to make a difference human, financial, material and He commended the participants in the system. educational resources. for availing themselves of the opportunity to learn about Prof. Rasheed asserted that The NUC Scribe urged the financial accounting and new governance was the driving participants to be open and systems of financial reporting, for force of higher education subsector all over the world, stressing that the present governance structure and process in the NUS revealed a very disturbing situation characterised by poor leadership, corrupt practices, avoidable conflicts, general under p e r f o r m a n c e , p r o f o u n d parochialism and inadequate t e a c h i n g a n d l e a r n i n g environments.