Key Points

• NBTE warns against the illegal award of ND and HND certificates.

• Offending institutions risk closure and criminal prosecution.

• Students urged to verify accreditation before admission.

The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has strongly warned polytechnics and training centres that are not approved to give out National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) certificates illegally across Nigeria.

At a press conference in Kaduna, Professor Idris Muhammad Bugaje, the Executive Secretary of the NBTE, said that several schools were found to be giving out diplomas that weren’t real in partnership with fake operators posing as accredited centres. He says that this illegal practice not only tricks students but also hurts the credibility of the country’s technical education system.

NBTE promises to take action against fake polytechnics

Bugaje said that the board has made a list of schools that have been giving out ND and HND certificates that weren’t approved. He said that a lot of these centres are running without permission from the NBTE and are giving people false credentials. “We have cases where students paid full tuition and got certificates that the Federal Government didn’t accept.” Bugaje said, “These kinds of institutions will be prosecuted.”

He also said that the board is working with the Federal Ministry of Education, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Department of State Services (DSS) to look into and close down schools that break the law.

Targeted illegal giving of ND and HND certificates

The head of the NBTE said that the board would step up its visits to polytechnics, monotechnics, and innovation enterprise institutions across the country to make sure they meet accreditation standards. Bugaje said that no school should offer ND or HND programs without the NBTE’s official approval.

He said that the crackdown fits with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s education reform agenda, which puts a lot of emphasis on making sure that Nigeria’s youth get a good education and learn new skills. Bugaje said that the NBTE database is now the only place to find information about accredited schools and their approved programs.

Students and employers told to check credentials

To protect the education system, NBTE told students to check the accreditation status of schools before enrolling. Employers were also told to check graduates’ certificates against NBTE’s list of accredited schools before hiring them.

Bugaje said that the board will soon start a public awareness campaign in all six geopolitical zones to find fake schools and warn parents about the dangers of sending their kids to schools that aren’t accredited.

He said again that NBTE is committed to restoring the integrity of Nigeria’s polytechnic system and made it clear that the board will not allow any school to issue fake or unauthorised certificates.