The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would allow polytechnics to provide bachelor’s degrees.
The proposed legislation, which is being sponsored by Speaker of the House Tajudeen Abbas and Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) politician Faud Laguda, intends to alter the Federal Polytechnics Act 2004.
The bill suggests amending section 3 of the Principal Act to include representatives from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) to the councils of all Nigerian polytechnics.
The proposed legislation’s clause 3 aims to change section 8 of the current law to require a PhD to be considered for the job of rector of a federal polytechnic.
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Laguda, who spearheaded the discussion, claimed that the modification would allow polytechnics to “adhere to the international best practices while meeting the demands of the ever-changing world.”
The “overall objective is to improve the provision of technical education to Nigerian students through a better organised polytechnic system in Nigeria,” he said, urging his colleagues to support and pass the measure.
When the speaker called for a voice vote, the bill received overwhelming approval from lawmakers.
