The Federal Government has approved N30 billion grant to 30 public universities of agriculture to immediately begin mechanised farming.
The government also announced the approval of the sum of N17 billion to 18 medical schools to train healthcare professionals, including medical doctors, dentists, pharmacists, and nurses across the country.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, who made this known on Tuesday in Abuja while declaring open a retreat organized by the Ministry of Education for pro-chancellors of federal universities, said this would be contribution of universities to food security in the country.
He has accordingly directed specialised universities to focus strictly on their core mandates and to henceforth stop offering programs unrelated to their original mandates.
Alausa disclosed that each university would receive N1 billion as a take-off grant for the initiative.
He stressed the importance of universities of agriculture owning and operating mechanized farming systems.
The Minister reaffirmed commitment towards addressing the pressing challenges facing education in Nigeria while advancing reforms that promote inclusivity, equity, and excellence.
He noted part of the new initiative was also to provide startup grants to university students to support their entrepreneurial skills.
The Minister charged the pro-chancellors to look critically into their curricula, kind of courses that the institutions running, urging them to ensure that Federal Universities of Agriculture offering courses in Accounting must stop.
“Your University of Agriculture should focus on what you are set up to do. We have federal universities of technology offering courses in Insurance. Let your universities of technology focus on what they were set up to do.
Because, as we churn out these graduates, we are not giving them any life skills.
“The second high-priority area that we will be focusing on is technical, vocational education and training. We want you also to incorporate a large chunk of this into your universities. Incorporate technical vocational skills in your curriculum so that several of these students, when they graduate, can graduate with life skills.
“There was a data that was presented by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, Director General. Today, in software methodologies, we have internationally 685,000 vacancies available. Cloud computing has about 300,000 jobs available today. Machine learning and AI, have about 300,000 jobs available today. Natural language processing, about 250,000 jobs. And I just counted those four areas. Over one million jobs are available today. More importantly, with the software methodologies, if we fill the 688,000 jobs today, there is an annual growth rate of 35 percent.
“So by next year, 200,000 more jobs will be available. So why can’t we design courses, short-term courses, to train these young university graduates from their third year? These are online courses and they can get online certification.
“These are international certifications. And those kids will work remotely from Nigeria, earn dollars, and then contribute to our society. I am challenging you to look into this. You can be doing Law, you can be doing Accounting, you can be doing Industrial Chemistry, but start training them on these digital skills. There is a huge available number of jobs there. They will earn good money.
“They will sit in Nigeria and work for a Singaporean company. Sit here and work for a company in Hong Kong and you will pay them business salaries. Some of it, is $3,000, even at the low end. Please, I need you to look into that, just inculcate this into their courses.
“We need to develop our young children, give them life skills for them to be able to function, be productive to themselves, productive to their society, and the country. So as pro-chancellor, I am challenging you to look into that.
“And as I said, the universities of agriculture as well as you also know, need to focus on what they are set up for.
“We have several universities there. You have the Faculty of Agriculture, but you don’t have farm. What are you teaching? We will work with you to encourage you to have your farm. Every university that has a faculty of agriculture, now wants you to set up your own mechanized farming and livestock production. And we have put aside about N30 billion for that.
“We will give you N1 billion. You will have to apply for N1 billion to set up your mechanized farming in each of these universities. Please.
That will also help to contribute to food security in your country.
“This president, one of his first pillars in his priority area is food security. We want you as the people who build our future, the education system, build the value of the future and freedom and opportunities.
“We want you to start using your power, your position to create opportunities for attainment. We are also working with TETFund on these:”
Alausa further said government would launch what he referred to as special impact projects in 18 of the nation’s universities.
“Our special high impact projects to 18 universities will be directed, focused on medical schools to specifically train doctors, dentists, pharmacists, and nurses.”
“18 of the universities will share that N17 billion. But we want you to focus on these four categories of courses. For doctors, pharmacists, dentists, and nurses.
“We need to create manpower. We have significant shortage of this manpower. We are also working with a TETFunf as well on this, ” he said.
“We will give 25 electric tricycles to those universities for them to use. The student will put it to the student union. They will operate it on a low-payment platform. Probably, N15 for each drop for each of the universities. That as well, we are working on.
“We also are going to roll out student startup innovation and entrepreneurial grants that we will give to very innovative students.
“We will give these grants to them to help them unleash the innate potential that they have in them. So our focus is to give the youths the support they need to be able to contribute to this country we are uniquely privileged today.”
Noting that “we have a population of 220 million and we have a unique demography”, he said 70 percent of this 220 million are below the age of 30 years, “so we don’t have a choice.”
“We need to give these young men and women opportunity for them to strive. Opportunity for them to be useful to themselves, to their communities and to the country, ” he added.
“Today marks the beginning of what I hope will be a series of insightful exchanges, strategic planning, and collective decision-making.
As we embark on this retreat, let us keep in mind the enormous responsibility we bear. We are here to not only address the immediate challenges but to envision, a future where our institutions lead in academic excellence, innovation, and equitable access to education.
He added that the retreat was an opportunity to reflect on the roles, share innovative ideas, and forge strategies that would enhance the governance and management of our universities, colleges of education, and polytechnics.
The Minister reminded the participants that their appointments were meant to strengthen governance structures to promote academic excellence, ensure that institutions are not only centres of learning but also hubs of innovation and research that respond to national needs, and foster an environment where inclusivity, equity, and access are not just buzzwords but “realities in our educational system.”
“I encourage open dialogue, critical thinking, and collaborative planning. Each of you brings invaluable experience and insight to the table. Let’s leverage this to push our institutions towards greater heights, ” he urged the participants.
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