The Chairman of the Governing Board of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, a professor of botany, has called for clearer boundaries and stronger coordination between the NUC and professional regulatory bodies to reduce overlapping accreditation demands and cut avoidable costs for Nigerian universities and students.

Mr Ogundipe made the call on Thursday, 24 September, while delivering the 16th convocation lecture of Osun State University (UNIOSUN), Osogbo, titled “Coping with Double Oversight: Harmonising the NUC and Professional Bodies for a Sustainable University System”.

The lecture examined the challenges created by the parallel regulatory responsibilities of the NUC and professional bodies, particularly in disciplines such as medicine, engineering, law, pharmacy, architecture and nursing.

The former Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) said the problem was not regulation itself, but insufficient coordination among regulators operating under different laws, standards and accreditation requirements.

“The central argument of this lecture is that  Nigeria does not need less regulation of university education; it needs better regulation. Quality assurance must remain non-negotiable,” he said.

Double oversight and cost to universities

Mr Ogundipe explained that while the NUC remains responsible for regulating university education, professional bodies also have legitimate responsibilities in ensuring that graduates meet the standards required to practise their professions.

“The NUC does not operate in a vacuum. Orbiting it and sometimes in tension with it are the professional regulatory bodies including the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Council of Legal Education, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN), Architects Registration Council of Nigeria (ARCON) and Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, among others,” he said.

According to him, tensions arise when professional bodies seek to exercise responsibilities that overlap with the statutory functions of the NUC, creating uncertainty for universities and students.

He mentioned that professional bodies should not determine whether universities can admit students, saying, such authority rests with the NUC.

Mr Ogundipe further identified six major fault lines in the regulatory relationship including: curriculum ownership and content, accreditation timelines and costs, differences between minimum university standards and professional standards, institutional capacity, resistance to new universities, challenges with professional registration after the National Youth Service Corps scheme, and gaps in regulatory data.

He said the consequences extend beyond university administrators, affecting academic staff, students, institutional planning, public confidence and national development.

While he criticised attempts by professional bodies to determine qualifications for academic positions in universities, he argued that universities should retain responsibility for academic appointments while professional councils concentrate on standards within their respective professions.

Towards coordinated accreditation

The professor argued that Nigeria’s university system needs to move beyond an accreditation-centred culture towards a broader quality assurance system that encourages continuous improvement.

“As a university administrator who has served at departmental, faculty, postgraduate, academic planning and senior management levels, I have learnt that regulation succeeds only when it is predictable, transparent, proportionate and developmental,” he said.

To address the challenges, he proposed a five-pillar framework built around legislative and policy clarification of jurisdictional boundaries, a permanent national consultative mechanism, harmonised accreditation procedures, student-protective developmental accreditation and a shared national regulatory information platform.

He also proposed a six-point implementation agenda involving the establishment of a national task group, development of unified regulatory matrices, coordinated accreditation pilots, enforcement of student-protection protocols, institutionalisation of regulatory intelligence and collective advocacy.

The proposed reforms are particularly relevant to students in professional programmes, who can face delays or additional requirements when moving from university education into professional practice.

Ogundipe urged graduating students to understand the regulatory systems governing their professions and to engage actively with relevant professional bodies rather than waiting until after graduation to navigate registration requirements.

UNIOSUN’s growth and the need for quality

The lecture formed part of the university’s 16th convocation ceremonies, which ran from 18 to 24 September. The university’s official programme listed the lecture as the final academic engagement before the award of postgraduate degrees.

In his welcome address, the Vice Chancellor of Osun State University, Odunayo Adebooye, a professor, said the institution had expanded significantly in recent years, providing a context for the discussion on regulation and quality assurance.

Mr Adebooye disclosed that the university had grown from 66 academic programmes in 2022 to 128, while postgraduate programmes increased from 99 to 299. He also said the institution had secured 175 international research grants.

He added that the convocation lectures should serve as platforms through which ideas generated in universities could influence public policy and contribute to national development.