NUC Charges VCs on Quality, AI Integration, Research Commercialisation

The Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, has urged Nigerian university vice-chancellors to prioritize quality assurance, digital transformation, and research commercialisation to maintain the country's national and global competitiveness. The call came during the opening of the 2026 NUC Retreat for all university vice-chancellors held in Abuja.

Ribadu highlighted that the retreat, scheduled for October 13-14, 2026, offers an opportunity to review policies and tackle challenges in the Nigerian university system amidst rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI). His commission has recently strengthened operational guidelines, including new rules for honorary doctoral degrees and introduced post-matriculation monitoring and carrying capacity visits to enhance admission processes.

The NUC Policy Development Strategy Committee has completed the Blueprint 2.0 for revitalizing Nigerian university education, and the commission is developing a 21st Century Strategic Plan to transition from the Annual Performance Evaluation (APER) to a Performance Monitoring System (PMS). Ribadu also announced plans to conduct post-accreditation monitoring visits to bolster programme accreditation.

The commission has already successfully implemented several initiatives to support research, such as the ACE Alliance platform uniting 20 Africa Centres of Excellence (ACEs), a four-volume compendium of research outputs, and integrating TETFund’s Tertiary Education Research and Application Services (TERAS) with the Nigerian Research and Education Network (NgREN). Ribadu is currently developing a National AI Roadmap and Policy Framework and aims to establish a Division for Research Commercialisation.

Further, Ribadu plans an international tour for select vice-chancellors to European and Asian universities to observe global trends in research commercialisation. For digital transformation, the NUC has deployed e-NUC to automate its workflow, and is developing accreditation software to improve transparency and data management.

Ribadu emphasized that university leadership demands vision, integrity, and accountability, urging VCs to ensure decisions are guided by due process and involve staff, students, councils, and stakeholders. Although funding challenges persist, Ribadu encourages universities to seek innovative resource mobilization through partnerships with the private sector, alumni, and development partners, citing NUC's collaborations with the World Bank, Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), and African Development Bank (AfDB) to elevate the National Universities Commission (NUC) to new heights.