By Oluwatosin Adeyemi
The Chairman of the Governing Board of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Oluwatoyin Temitayo Ogundipe, has called for the harmonisation of accreditation exercises conducted by the NUC and professional bodies in Nigerian universities.
Ogundipe made the call while delivering a guest lecture at the 16th Convocation Ceremony of Osun State University(UNIOSUN) on Thursday.
According to the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Odunayo Clement Adebooye,the lecture was organised as part of the university’s convocation tradition of bringing experts to discuss issues that could influence policies and strengthen the university system.
“The university chose accreditation as this year’s discussion because universities often undergo separate accreditation exercises by the NUC and profqessional bodies, which could lead to duplication and additional costs”, he said.
Speaking on the issue, Ogundipe described Nigeria’s dual oversight system as necessary but operationally dysfunctional because the two regulatory processes remain largely unharmonised.
“Academic quality and professional readiness require different expertise, but they call for better coordination to reduce the burden on universities while strengthening their programmes,” he said.
Ogundipe proposed a five-pillar framework comprising legislative clarity, a national consultative mechanism, synchronised accreditation protocols, graduated recognition and a shared data platform.
He said implementing the framework would require political will, sustained leadership and unified advocacy, urging universities to move beyond identifying the problem and contribute to building solutions for the Nigerian university system.
Ogundipe urged the graduating students to engage with their professional bodies, understand their regulatory requirements and see their degrees as the beginning of their professional journey.
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