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By Daniel Adaji
The Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, has backed the proposal by the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) to regulate the admission and enrolment of students into engineering and technology programmes in Nigerian universities.
This endorsement was given during a recent courtesy visit by the COREN President, Prof. Sadiq Abubakar, and his delegation to JAMB headquarters.
The visit was part of COREN’s broader strategy to strengthen collaboration with relevant institutions to improve the quality of engineering education across the country.
Speaking during the visit, Abubakar stressed the importance of enforcing an admission quota system for accredited engineering and technology programmes.
According to him, “regulated enrolment is critical in safeguarding the quality and integrity of engineering education,” and COREN remains committed to “upholding global best practices in the training of engineers and technologists across Nigeria.”
Oloyede applauded COREN’s efforts, stating, “I commend the desire of COREN to intervene and improve the quality of engineering education and enhance the skills, competencies and competitiveness of graduates of both universities and polytechnics.”
He added, “I endorse the request of COREN to regulate the admission/enrolment of young Nigerians into various engineering and technology programmes, similar to the current practice extended to the regulators in the health sector.”
Oloyede, however, warned against the excessive burden placed on universities by multiple accreditation exercises. “The proliferation of assessment and accreditation visits by numerous regulators is a huge burden. There is a need for a harmonised approach where regulators like COREN can carry out joint accreditation with the National Universities Commission (NUC),” he said.
In a statement on Thursday, the JAMB Registrar also congratulated COREN on being recognised by the Federal Government in the recent NUC policy shift. He advised the council to build on this development by addressing existing gaps in engineering education.
According to him, this alignment will position COREN “among the league of regulators with specific authority on admissions into engineering programmes”, as is currently the case with COREN and the NBTE for HND and ND programmes in polytechnics.
He praised COREN’s foresight, noting that this kind of regulatory framework “ought to have been in place at the same time as the regulators in the health sector.”