The National Universities Commission has called for stronger feedback from employers and industry to ensure university curricula remain responsive to labour market demands and equip graduates with relevant entrepreneurial and practical skills.
Executive Secretary of the NUC, Professor Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, made the call in Abuja during a two-day Entrepreneurship Institutional Readiness Workshop organised by the commission in collaboration with the British Council.
Ribadu, who was represented by the Director of Research, Innovation and Information Technology, Mal. Lawal Mohammed Faruk, also urged universities to invest more in innovation hubs and adopt data-driven assessments to guide curriculum reviews and strengthen entrepreneurship education.
He stressed that entrepreneurship should not be treated as a standalone course or activity but should be integrated across university systems.
According to him, the commission has established benchmarks for monitoring Entrepreneurship Development Centres in universities, focusing on quality control, effective mentorship, sustainable funding and stronger partnerships between universities and industry.
Ribadu recalled that entrepreneurship education received a significant boost following the Federal Government’s directive for universities to establish functional EDCs.
He said that while only about seven institutions had standardised entrepreneurship courses at the time, the sector had since expanded with a clearer framework for quality assurance.
The NUC Executive Secretary added that the commission had continued to support universities through funding, capacity building, infrastructure and staffing interventions.
He also noted that recent reforms under the Core Curriculum and Minimum Academic Standards had given universities greater flexibility to respond to emerging skills requirements.
According to Ribadu, 30 per cent of the CCMAS curriculum content is left to individual universities, allowing them to introduce high-demand practical skills such as software engineering, data analytics and sustainable business models.
He said assessment was also gradually moving beyond conventional theoretical examinations to practical outcomes such as prototyping, pitching and business-plan execution.
Ribadu reaffirmed the NUC’s commitment to compliance monitoring and assessment visits to ensure that entrepreneurship programmes remain relevant to industry and help graduates transition from job seekers to job creators.
He further called for stronger collaboration among universities, employers and industry stakeholders in shaping entrepreneurship education and ensuring that graduates acquire the competencies needed in the workplace.
Speaking at the workshop, facilitator Mr Daniel Emenahor, who supports international partnerships between British and Nigerian universities, said the programme was designed to develop practical solutions for strengthening entrepreneurship education in Nigerian universities.
The British Council Nigeria representative, Ms Donna McGowan, commended the NUC for its leadership in advancing entrepreneurship education and maintaining its partnership with the council.
She encouraged universities to use the workshop to strengthen entrepreneurship education and make it an integral part of institutional development.
McGowan said universities have an important role not only in preparing young people for employment but also in helping them develop innovative solutions to societal challenges and create opportunities for others.
She noted that a major challenge was moving entrepreneurship beyond being simply a centre, course, competition or annual event and making it an integral part of university operations.
She disclosed that the framework being explored at the workshop focused on six interconnected areas: Strategy, Environment, Partnerships, Pedagogy, Implementation and Impact.
According to her, having a recognised entrepreneurship centre alone would not guarantee significant impact without institutional support, meaningful partnerships, suitable teaching approaches and measurable outcomes.
She therefore urged participants to review existing practices, identify successful approaches and challenges within their institutions, and develop practical actions that could be implemented.
A major highlight of the workshop was the presentation and validation of the new Operational Guidelines for Entrepreneurship Development Centres in Nigerian Universities by the lead resource person and University of Ibadan professor, Prof. Gbemisola Oke.
Oke said the guidelines had undergone several reviews and consultations involving the NUC and British Council, resulting in what she described as a more streamlined framework.
She explained that the document provides guidance on the definition and functions of EDCs, staffing, infrastructure, funding, monitoring and evaluation.
According to her, the guidelines position EDCs within a university-wide entrepreneurship ecosystem rather than as standalone units, with different parts of the university expected to contribute to entrepreneurial learning and development.
Oke said the objectives of the guidelines include establishing a uniform national framework for EDCs, embedding entrepreneurial competencies across academic programmes in line with the CCMAS and global frameworks, strengthening university-community and university-industry partnerships, and promoting a culture of innovation, monitoring and evaluation.
She added that the framework draws from global practices, including the European Entrepreneurship Competence Framework and the Triple Helix Model of University-Industry-Government collaboration, while being adapted to Nigeria’s Agenda 2050, the National Development Plan and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Oke explained that the new approach represents a shift from a centrally taught, standalone entrepreneurship course towards a cross-disciplinary model in which entrepreneurial capabilities are integrated across academic programmes.
She added that the framework would cover the entire process from research and invention to intellectual property protection, licensing, commercialisation and revenue generation.
Assessment under the new guidelines, she said, would increasingly focus on practical outcomes such as patents, prototypes and business creation, supported by appropriate intellectual property policies, infrastructure and incentive mechanisms.
