The Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, has presented a new curriculum for Nigerian universities, saying it will add value to graduates from the tertiary institutions.
Adamu stated this at the public presentation of Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards (CCMAS) Book 1 series for Nigerian universities and a book in his honour, in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said that the new curriculum would equip graduates across universities with needed skills, knowledge and expertise to succeed in the 21st century.
“We must continue to ensure graduates from Nigeria universities are equipped with needed skills, knowledge and expertise in order to succeed in the 21st Century.
” We must consistently strive to improve our educational programmes and learning with the reality of global best practices. The CCMAS book series is aimed at achieving this goal, ” he said.
Adamu called for the full implementation of the curriculum while saying the launch of CCMAS in 17 disciplines was one of the greatest step taken by the National Universities Commission (NUC) to ensure Nigerian universities meet current global demands.
“The implementation of CCMAS requires dedication, hard work and willingness to embrace change by every one, therefore it is important we embrace training and equipping our academics with the necessary skills and knowledge to implement CMAS,”he said.
The minister also said that the present education backwardness being witnessed in the northern part of the country was caused by people of the area.
Adamu commended the NUC for its drive in ensuring the springing up of more private universities and said the commission’s effort was paying off with the establishment of more of such institutions in Northern Nigeria in recent times.
“The north is in self-imposed educational backwardness because the interest of the North is Islam and Islam is the greatest promulgator of knowledge.
” In 859 AD, one Fatima Al-Fihri (sic), a Muslim woman established the first university in the world, at the time, the Italian universities, Oxford, Cambridge universities have not started, the first university is still existing there, it is now in Morocco.
” And about 100 years after that one, another university was established, the second university in the world before the universities of Europe, in Cairo and just like the first one, this university was established by a Muslim woman, Fatimatu Zahara.
“So the first two universities in the world were established by Muslim women and here people are using Islam to keep women at home. I think it does not make sense,” the minister said.
Adamu, however, expressed delight that out of the 37 new private universities approved by the Federal Executive Council on Monday, large number of them are situated in the north.
He called for the establishment of Federal Teachers Service Commission, saying such move would ensure reforms put in place in the teaching profession yield desired results.