NBTE Guidelines & Requirements For Establishing A Polytechnic In Nigeria

Public and private Polytechnics in Nigeria in Nigeria are no longer dumping grounds for candidates who fail to clinch admission into universities of their choice. Quality private Polytechnics especially are springing up almost yearly and this is making admission into tertiary institution much easier, all thanks to the ease in the establishment and approval of private polytechnics in Nigeria by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).

There are over 110 public and private Polytechnics in Nigeria. You can own a private Polytechnic in Nigeria should you meet the following requirements which I will be listing by stating the steps required one after the other in the right order of application.

NBTE Headquaters

Pursuant to the recommendations of the Commission on the Review of polytechnics in Nigeria, the Federal Government of Nigeria has approved guidelines for the establishment of polytechnics in Nigeria. Relevant excerpts contained in the Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions).

An institution of Higher Education may be sponsored or owned by the Government of the Federation or of a State or Local Government or by any of the following, that is:-

a. By a Company incorporated in Nigeria: or
b. By an individual or association of individuals who are citizens of Nigeria, and who satisfy the criteria set out in the Schedule to this Act for establishment of institutions.

Requirements, Guidelines for Establishing A Polytechnic In Nigeria

(1) Application for the establishment of a private polytechnic shall be made to the Minister:-

a) in the case of a Polytechnic or College of Agriculture, through the National Board for Technical Education;
c. in the case of a College of Education, through the National Commission for Colleges of Education; and
d. in any other case, through the Director-General of the Federal Ministry of Education, in accordance with the guidelines prescribed for making the application.

(2) No State, Local Government or tertiary institution shall benefit from the polytechnic tax with respect to a tertiary institution unless the application for the establishment of that tertiary institution was made in accordance with the provision of subsection (1) of this section.

(3) No person or group shall be granted approval to establish a private polytechnic unless the criteria set out in the Schedule to this Act have been satisfied.

CRITERIA FOR ESTABLISHING A PRIVATE POLYTECHNIC IN NIGERIA

(1) The academic structure and spread of discipline of the polytechnic shall be such as would cater for areas of felt needs.

(2) Evidence shall be produced to show that the institution would be provided with adequate:-

(a) Funding, both Capital and Recurrent;

(b) Academic and Support Staff.

(3)The proposed staffing guidelines shall meet with current guidelines of :-

(a) The National Universities Commission; or

(b) The National Board for Technical Education; or

(4) The Federal Government must be satisfied that, on approval being given, the sources of funding and necessary funds will be available.

(5) The Federal Government or its accredited agency shall ascertain and be satisfied itself that:-

(a) The fixed and enabling assets, that is, funds, land, movable and immovable assets, are appropriate for establishing the institution in the light of such factors as:-

i. The type of institution envisaged,

ii. Its philosophy and objectives,

iii. The cost of goods and services prevailing at the time;

(b) The assets shall be assigned to the institution on approval being given for the institution to be established; and

(c) That the applicant has supplied a concrete and guaranteed source of financial support for the Polytechni to the tune of one hundred million naira (N100 million) for a polytechnic or mono-technic over a period of 5 years.

(5) (1) A proposed institution shall have clearly spelt out master plan for infrastructural and programme development for at least 20 to 25 years which shall make adequate provision for:-

(a) Plan space, aesthetic beauty and fixed final assets;

(b) Minimum land area of 50 hectares for a Polytechnic or Monotechnic and 25 hectares for a College of Education, in a salutary site.

c) The site distance from an urban complex shall take into account availability of municipal services, including water, transportation, private accommodation, communication and other consequential inadequate in its Community.

(6) (1) A proposed institution shall have an adequate environment base and shall be open to all Nigerians irrespective of ethnic derivation, social status, religious or political persuasion.

(2) Accordingly, its laws and status shall not conflict with the conventional responsibilities in academia or interfere with avowed traditional institutional autonomy.

(7) To pre-empt problems of inadequate municipal facilities, the proposed institution shall have a clear policy on student and staff accommodation and catering services.

(8) The proposed institution shall have a well articulated mission and set of objectives which may be original and innovative but unequivocally in consonance with the socio-economic and political aspirations of Nigeria.

(9) To create and sustain credibility and confidence from the start, the administrative structure of the proposed institution shall not depart too radically from established norms.

(10) The library, laboratory and workshop facilities including instructional tools and consumables, shall be adequate and there shall be long-range plans for sustaining them.

(11) The planning and feasibility report of the proposed institution include proposed contracts and affiliation with existing similar institutions and plans for cooperation and interaction.

(12) The criteria set out in this Schedule shall also apply to a proposed institution which is an Open University except that:-

(a)The minimum land area requirement shall not apply; and

(b) Guidelines prescribed by the appropriate authority as regard technical infrastructure for functional and effective operation shall be satisfied

From the above, you will see that the requirements must be duly met for NBTE to grant the approval or license for the establishments of private Polytechnic in Nigeria else your application will be disapproved pending when all conditions are met.

I hope this information has helped in giving you all you need to know about the requirements for establishing a Polytechnic in Nigeria inline with the NBTE’s approved guidelines. If you have any question as regards the above, please feel free to send your questions through the comment section below below and I will be glad to assist.