Prof. Tunji Olaopa, Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, has called for the elimination of the Higher National Diploma (HND) awarded by polytechnics in Nigeria.
Speaking at a national dialogue on “The Future of HND in the Nigerian Educational Landscape” organized by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Olaopa suggested that the existing disparity between B.Sc./B.Tech. and HND holders can only be resolved by revisiting the 2007 recommendations of the Heads of Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology (COHEADS).
The COHEADS memorandum proposed converting polytechnics into campuses of nearby universities and transforming the largest polytechnics in each geopolitical zone into full-fledged universities of technology. Olaopa supported this idea, advocating for the retention of the National Diploma (ND) as a qualifying certificate for entry into these new universities.
Additionally, he proposed the creation of two streams of degrees: B.Sc. (Technology) and B.Tech., with the latter focusing on imparting technical skills for various job levels. He cited the First Technical University, Ibadan, as a model for this approach.
However, Olaopa expressed concerns that current policy measures lack the rigor necessary to achieve these objectives and emphasized the need for a creative remodelling of the educational system to make polytechnics and universities mutually reinforcing.
