By FUNMILAYO ADEYEMI

The Federal Government has introduced specialised Higher National Diploma (HND) programmes in Artificial Intelligence (AI).

The Executive Secretary, National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Prof. Idris Bugaje, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

According to him, other newly introduced degree programmes included, Cyber-security, Software Engineering, and Networking.

Assessing the impact of President Bola Tinubu?s administration after two years in office, Bugaje said the move is a major stride toward aligning Nigeria?s education system with global technological trends.

According to him, the move is also part of a broader plan to deepen the country?s engagement with the Fourth Industrial Revolution and equip young Nigerians with the digital skills needed for the modern economy.

?We have unbundled the traditional HND programmes into more specific skill areas.

?This is already being implemented; and, under the Nigeria Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF), we are offering even more specialised training modules in these areas,? he said.

Bugaje maintained that the expansion into AI and emerging technologies was not limited to academic offerings, explaining that the digital tools were now integrated into the governance and oversight of technical institutions.

?For example, a digital accreditation platform powered by AI has been deployed to monitor compliance with academic standards, identify faculty duplications, and curb malpractices.

?If a lecturer appears on multiple polytechnic websites, the AI system will flag it. This will help us maintain integrity in the accreditation process,? Bugaje said.

Under the new system, he said, the institutions were required to upload detailed information about their facilities, equipment, and faculty onto a centralised digital platform.

?With this, we no longer need to send teams physically for most accreditations.

?This saves cost, reduces risk, and curbs manipulation of the process,? he said.

He further said that institutions in remote rural areas without reliable internet infrastructure were given a temporary alternative.

Bugaje said institutions in remote areas would be assessed by accredited vendors who would submit reports to the NBTE for approval or rejection of programmes.

He further said that the digital shift in accreditation was guided by the Minimum National Academic Standards (MNAS), which outlined specific requirements for each National Diploma (ND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) programme, including facilities, faculty qualifications, and equipment.

He said the digital accreditation initiative, alongside the introduction of advanced technology programmes, was designed to make Nigerian polytechnics more relevant in a rapidly changing world.

He said the accreditation would also help the country to harness technology to boost its GDP, much like Southeast Asian nations had done.

?Nigeria has no choice but to embed technology in education and economic development.

?This is how we can unlock growth and prosperity in the digital age,? he emphasised. (NAN)

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