The Federal Government is currently weighing the implementation of assessment tests for Nigerians who obtain degrees from foreign institutions, particularly in African countries. Dr Folake Olatunji-David, Acting Permanent Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education, made this disclosure on Monday during the 37th meeting of the National Standing Committee (NSC) on Evaluation of Foreign Qualifications in Abuja. According to Olatunji-David, the assessment test would be required before any foreign qualifications could be evaluated for mobilisation into the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). She explained that the proposal was designed to ensure that foreign qualifications presented by Nigerians genuinely reflected learning achievements and met the required academic standards. The measure is particularly important given the growing number of Nigerians studying abroad, especially in West Africa.
"We must ensure that the standard of education in Nigeria is not lowered by allowing all manner of foreign qualifications that are not recognised to be paraded by Nigerians without the corresponding learning achievement," Olatunji-David said.
She further noted that while the government wants to encourage global socialisation and education, it also intends to maintain academic standards.
"We want to ensure that, yes, for every certificate given, they are earned, and they can produce people that can contribute positively to our national development. I therefore invite this committee once again to consider, if necessary, an assessment test before such graduates are evaluated for NYSC," she added.
Olatunji-David described the committee as central to efforts to safeguard the integrity of Nigeria's education system by ensuring that only genuine and duly accredited foreign qualifications were recognised. She expressed concern over the rising cases of forgery of Nigerian and foreign degree certificates, saying the ministry was taking steps to address the menace. The acting permanent secretary commended members of the committee for decisions reached at their previous meeting, describing them as important steps towards improving the evaluation and accreditation of foreign qualifications. She said the ministry had recorded progress in confirming the accreditation status of foreign institutions, issuing clearance letters for NYSC mobilisation, authenticating certificates and issuing no-objection letters. According to her, the ministry also issues eligibility and proficiency letters to Nigerians travelling abroad for employment or further studies.
"Since the beginning of this year, the evaluation of foreign certificates and authentication of Nigerian certificates have been automated and digitalised, making the process seamless. The fees accruing are remitted into government accounts, thereby increasing the ministry's revenue generation," Olatunji- David said.
She said the committee would deliberate on five key issues, including guidelines for issuing no-objection letters required for registering proposed institutions with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Others included compliance by foreign-curriculum secondary schools operating in Nigeria with the country's education policy on public examinations. Such schools must prepare their students for examinations conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO), National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB) or National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies (NBAIS), as applicable. Students must sit for at least one of the recognised examinations before graduating from such schools, irrespective of where they intend to pursue higher education.
The committee would also consider the recognition of foreign secondary school qualifications, including the Higher School Diploma issued in the United States and Canada, and Baccalaureate certificates issued by French schools. Other issues for consideration include establishing mechanisms for monitoring Nigerians studying in African institutions through institutional visits and recognising foreign regulatory bodies responsible for transmitting information on accredited institutions through diplomatic channels.
Earlier, Mr Gabriel Amudipe, Director of Education Support Services in the ministry, said the committee's work was critical to improving learning outcomes, institutional performance and quality assurance across the education sector. He urged members to be objective, fair and firm in their deliberations to ensure that genuine qualifications were cleared while cases that fell short of the required standards were appropriately addressed.
"The design and committee on evaluation remains one of the most critical structures for ensuring that our policies, programmes, and interventions are achieved. Your work directly influences the improvement of learning outcomes, the strengthening of institutional performance, and the advancement of quality assurance mechanisms at all levels of education," Amudipe said.