Nigeria is grappling with a shortage of nearly 200,000 qualified teachers at the basic education level, the Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), Angela Ajala, warned on Wednesday, adding that declining enrolment in Colleges of Education was compounding the crisis.
Ajala disclosed this in Abuja at the opening of the 2nd Annual National Conference of the Committee of Provosts of Colleges of Education in Nigeria, painting a grim picture of a system under severe strain.
“Eighteen states went five consecutive years without recruiting a single teacher, while some colleges recorded zero first-year intake,” she said, calling for reforms that go beyond incremental measures.
She also raised concern over low female enrolment in some northern institutions, noting that women accounted for less than a quarter of students in certain colleges.
Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Said Ahmad, urged Colleges of Education to integrate skill acquisition and entrepreneurship into their curricula, arguing that graduates must be equipped with practical competencies to create jobs and contribute to the economy beyond the classroom.
“The integration of skill acquisition and entrepreneurship into teacher education is essential. Our graduates must be equipped with practical competencies that enable them to thrive in diverse environments,” she said.
Ahmad highlighted ongoing government reforms, including the Dual Mandate policy, which empowers Colleges of Education to award both the Nigeria Certificate in Education and Bachelor’s degrees. She also referenced the Student Venture Capital Grant, designed to fund student-led innovations with up to N50 million, though she expressed disappointment that no student from any College of Education had benefited from recent grant awards.
The federal government, she said, was prioritising education as a driver of socio-economic transformation, with emphasis on access, quality and relevance.
Chairman of the Committee of Provosts, Ali Adamu, described the Dual Mandate as a historic achievement but cautioned that policy alone would not transform the system without deliberate efforts to embed digital literacy, innovation and practical skills across institutions.
The conference, themed “Revolutionising Nigeria’s College of Education System,” brought together provosts, policymakers and education stakeholders to chart a course for reforming teacher education and aligning it with global standards.
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