The National Universities Commission (NUC) in Nigeria has debunked a social media report stating that universities without adequate staffing can receive full accreditation.

The denial was contained in a statement by the Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Abdullahi Ribadu, in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

He said the claim that Accreditation is a mere formality to the effect that universities without adequate staffing can receive full accreditation assessment is not only false, baseless, but this has been disseminated from an uninformed position.

he explained.

The NUC Boss further explained that the programme accreditation instrument used for the exercise has seven sections, four of which are considered core areas, which include Academic Matters, Staffing, Physical Facilities, and Library.

he said

He said the commission is a creation of law and is the sole regulatory agency empowered by Section 10 of the Education National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions Act Cap E3 LFN 2004, to conduct Accreditation of Programmes in universities and other degree-awarding institutions in Nigeria.

he said.

Professor Ribadu explained that in carrying out the exercise, the Commission adopts a peer review approach, where it engages independent panels of Professors who are subject experts to serve as evaluators in the accreditation of academic programmes.

Furthermore, the Commission’s regulatory regime had been adjudged to be one of the most robust quality assurance ecosystems in Africa with countries like Namibia, Gambia and recently Niger Republic amongst others had come to understudy its best practices.

Additionally, foreign universities regularly utilise NUC’s accreditation results for the screening of applications for admission purposes in their institutions.

“We reckon that there is no such perfect Accreditation system anywhere in the world, but we are poised as a University System to continually work on deepening our culture of quality assurance.

“NUC’s programme accreditation evaluates individual academic programmes to ensure compliance with the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards (CCMAS)”, he said.

The Executive Secretary stated that the Commission, which does not condone any unwholesome behaviour, will continue to strengthen its accreditation process to the highest standards of due diligence, while upholding its integrity at all times.

He added that once accreditation results are submitted to the NUC, the Commission undertakes a vigorous internal review of the reports to ensure that evaluators adhere to the NUC’s accreditation guidelines. This is followed by a ratification session where NUC representatives defend the findings of the accreditation reports before the NUC Management Commission. This process, which is typically thorough and painstaking, is tailored towards ensuring the credibility of the results.

“As a university system which has enjoyed the glorious years of effective and reputable quality assurance, we are proud to say we are determined to ensure that the Nigerian University System operates at full strength despite the numerous challenges that it continues to face.

“As a good practice, universities are enjoined to establish and operationalize their respective internal quality assurance mechanisms to enhance the culture of quality. We also wish to inform the public that the NUC remains committed to ensuring that Nigerian universities produce competent graduates who can compete globally.

“As a result, we urge stakeholders and the general public to rely on verified information rather than on baseless accusations that undermine the credibility of our higher education system”, he added.