The Federal Government has urged Nigerian universities to embrace artificial intelligence and digital technologies while strengthening regulatory compliance, governance and accountability to improve the quality of higher education.
The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, made the call on Tuesday while declaring open the 2026 retreat of the NUC and Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian universities in Abuja.
Ahmad said the rapid transformation of higher education globally, driven by artificial intelligence, digital learning, data analytics and changing research and funding models, required universities to review their policies and practices to remain competitive.
She, however, cautioned that adopting AI must go hand in hand with safeguards on academic integrity, ethics, data protection and responsible use, urging institutions to develop appropriate policies to guide its application.
The minister said, “In modern times, university systems all over the world are greatly being influenced by artificial intelligence, digital learning, data analytics, virtual laboratories, online academic resources, quality assurance agencies’ review, changing funding models, innovation, research and development, workforce productivity, graduate employability, and international competitiveness, amongst others.”
She described the retreat, which is being held from October 13 to 14 at the NUC headquarters in Abuja, as timely, noting that the challenges confronting Nigerian universities could not be addressed through isolated institutional efforts or regulatory directives alone.
According to her, stronger collaboration between the commission and university managements is necessary to ensure effective policy implementation and compliance with established standards.
The retreat is themed, “Enhancing Regulatory Compliance, Governance, Leadership, and Partnership in the Nigerian University System.”
Ahmad said universities must go beyond awarding degrees to become centres of knowledge creation, research, innovation, character development and industrial transformation.
She added that the quality of universities directly affects the quality of the country’s human capital, economic productivity, national prosperity and stability.
The minister urged vice-chancellors to uphold transparency and accountability in financial management, procurement, recruitment, promotion, admissions and examinations.
She said university leaders should establish clear institutional visions, set measurable performance targets and create environments that support academic excellence.
Ahmad also called for stronger consultations between the NUC and university managements to facilitate policy dialogue, experience-sharing and collective problem-solving.
She said the retreat should produce practical recommendations rather than end with discussions, expressing confidence that its proposed communiqué and post-retreat monitoring mechanism would provide a roadmap for measurable improvements in the university system.
In his address, the Executive Secretary of the NUC, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, said the commission was strengthening its regulatory and quality assurance mechanisms to improve the relevance and standards of university education.
Ribadu, who assumed office on December 23, 2024, said the commission had introduced new measures, including guidelines for awarding and using honorary doctorate degrees, with sanctions for universities that violated the rules.
He also disclosed that the NUC had introduced post-matriculation monitoring and carrying-capacity visits to universities to improve admission processes.
According to him, the commission is preparing to introduce post-accreditation monitoring visits to strengthen oversight of academic programmes after accreditation exercises.
Ribadu said the NUC Policy Development Strategy Committee had completed a comprehensive review and produced Blueprint 2.0 for the rapid revitalisation of Nigerian university education.
He added that the commission was developing a 21st-century strategic plan and transitioning from the Annual Performance Evaluation system to a Performance Monitoring System pioneered by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
The NUC boss urged universities to strengthen institutional strategic planning and ensure that research produced by their academics translated into practical solutions for national development.
He said universities needed stronger partnerships with industry, government and other stakeholders to address challenges in agriculture, healthcare, education, technology, manufacturing and the environment.
Ribadu disclosed that the commission had launched the ACE Alliance platform to bring together all 20 African Centres of Excellence in Nigeria to promote collaboration on research relevant to the country’s development.
He also said a four-volume compendium of research outputs from the centres had been unveiled.
The executive secretary added that the Tertiary Education Research and Application Services platform of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund had been integrated with the Nigerian Research and Education Network to encourage research collaboration.
On artificial intelligence, Ribadu said the commission was developing a National AI Roadmap and Policy Framework for the Nigerian University System.
He said the NUC was also working to strengthen research commercialisation through the establishment of a dedicated division, while exploring opportunities for selected vice-chancellors to study research commercialisation practices in universities in Europe and Asia.
On digital transformation, Ribadu announced that the commission had developed and deployed e-NUC, a platform designed to automate its entire workflow.
He said the NUC was also developing accreditation software to improve transparency, data management and quality assurance across universities.
However, he warned that digital transformation required more than acquiring equipment and software, stressing the need for institutional preparedness, appropriate policies, capacity building and cybersecurity.
Addressing the challenge of funding, Ribadu acknowledged that inadequate resources remained a major constraint on university development.
He urged institutions to explore alternative funding opportunities through partnerships with the private sector, alumni associations and development partners, while ensuring that such arrangements aligned with institutional objectives and regulatory requirements.
He disclosed that the commission had established partnerships with organisations, including the World Bank, the Agence Française de Développement and the African Development Bank, to attract additional support for the university system.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee and Director of Research, Innovation and Information Technology at the NUC, L.M. Faruk, said the retreat was designed to strengthen the relationship between the commission and universities through strategic engagement with vice-chancellors.
Faruk said the meeting would focus on regulatory compliance and quality assurance, transformational leadership and governance, as well as strategic partnerships for the development of university education.
He expressed hope that the deliberations would produce actionable recommendations for addressing longstanding and emerging challenges in the sector.
The retreat brings together vice-chancellors of federal, state and private universities, alongside education officials, university union leaders and other stakeholders to deliberate on the future of higher education in Nigeria.