The Governor of Enugu State, Peter Mbah has disclosed why Nigerian graduates are not innovative and inventive after graduation from the higher institutions.
Mbah noted that the graduates Nigeria churn out from the universities are not exposed to productive skills. And they are not competent in discovering new things through experiential learning.
The Governor made this disclosure while delivering the 1st Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT, Distinguished Personalities Lecture Series titled “Experiential Learning: Building the Wealth of the Nation” on Tuesday in Enugu.
Mbah noted that the Nigeria’s current education model and spending could not deliver the much-needed speedy development and economic transformation.
Going forward, the Governor said there is the need for an urgent paradigm shift. From the rote of memorization to experiential learning. This, he described as the missing link between education, industrialization and GDP growth.
He said, “Why do Nigerian universities seldom feature on the global ranking list of world’s best universities? Why have they seemed perennially unable to become the ideas factory which universities ought to be? Why are our universities not producing inventive graduates?
“The answers to these questions lie in many inconvenient truths. Amongst which is the fact that the learning in our schools, from basic to tertiary, has for years not imbued our young people with productive skills and competencies
“This is a root cause of our underdevelopment,” Mbah said.
The Governor noted that nations like the US, China, Germany, and the Netherlands, that invested the most in building a qualitative and experiential education ecosystem, were the world’s leading economies.
Mbah stated that his administration was currently building 260 smart green schools to power experiential learning in the 260 wards of Enugu State.
He emphasized that by embedding the model from the basic to tertiary levels of education, Enugu was creating a seamless pipeline. Where students progress from foundational learning to practical innovation.
The Governor, therefore, directed all state-owned tertiary institutions to deliver experiential learning going forward.
“So, we hereby announce as a policy that all state-owned tertiary institutions in Enugu State must henceforth deliver experiential learning to our children.
“We want to see this change reflected in planning, budget, curriculum reform, assessment and promotions, as well as research.
“Experiential learning ensures that education is deeply connected to the challenges and opportunities of the real world.
“It fosters critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration. It empowers students to see themselves not as passive learners, but as active problem-solvers,” the Governor said.
Mbah, therefore, adduced reason for his administration’s allocation of 33 per cent of the state’s budget to the education sector. This, he said, was due to the value his government attached to education and experiential learning.
source: NAN
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