The Federal Government has announced a one-year suspension on the establishment of new polytechnics and monotechnics across the country.
However, health institutions have been exempted due to concerns over low enrollment rates.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, approved the moratorium, which takes immediate effect, according to a statement issued by the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education, Prof. Idris Bugaje, on Thursday in Kaduna.
“This decision means that all new applications for the establishment of polytechnics and monotechnics are suspended for the next 12 months,” Bugaje stated.
However, institutions currently undergoing assessment will be required to pay specific fees to continue their registration process.
“Polytechnics awaiting ministerial approval must pay an application fee of N4 million, along with a processing fee of N2 million per programme of study,” he said. “For monotechnics, the application fee is N2 million, while the processing fee is N1 million per programme.”
Institutions have been given a 30-day window to make these payments, after which any pending registration process will be terminated if the fees are not settled.
Bugaje also clarified that the exemption for health institutions means they will continue to be registered under the same fee structure as monotechnics.
He explained that the move is aimed at ensuring that technical and vocational education institutions operate efficiently within their approved capacities.
“The goal is to make sure that our tertiary technical institutions are properly populated and not overburdened beyond their approved limits,” he added.
