Nigeria’s foremost institution for technical and vocational education, Yaba College of Technology, on Thursday reassured students and stakeholders that the process of its transition to a full-fledged Technical and Vocational University remained firmly on course as it matriculated 17,130 students for the 2025/2026 academic session.
The Rector, Dr. Ibraheem Adedotun Abdul, said this at the matriculation ceremony, which was held at the institution in Lagos.
Engr. Abdul said the Federal Government’s approval for the conversion of the 79-year-old institution into a university had reached advanced stages, with legislative processes already ongoing at the National Assembly.
Addressing journalists shortly after the ceremony, the Rector clarified that the announcement regarding the institution’s university status was not a new development but a reaffirmation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s approval and commitment to the process.
He stated: “The announcement is not new.
“I am just reiterating it to the new students that the President has approved our conversion to a university.
“The Minister himself made the announcement last year and I want to assure everyone that it is on course.”
Abdul explained that the process had already secured Senate approval and was currently before the House of Representatives for concurrence before transmission to President Tinubu for assent.
He said: “The process is at the Legislative House now.
“We have Senate approval and very soon the concurrence by the House of Representatives will be there and the bill will go to the President for signature.”
The Rector, however, clarified that the institution would continue to operate as a polytechnic pending the completion of regulatory and accreditation processes by the National Universities Commission (NUC).
He added: “These are not our last set of students as a college because there are still processes to follow.
“The NUC has to approve our courses before degree programmes can commence.
“We will continue our admissions as a polytechnic while the transition progresses.”
Dr. Abdul also used the occasion to unveil massive infrastructure expansion plans aimed at positioning the institution for its proposed university status.
According to him, President Tinubu had approved a N5 billion take-off intervention fund for the construction of a 13-storey building within the institution, alongside another N2 billion intervention for faculty development projects.
He said: “We are going vertical.
“The President has approved a sum of N5 billion start-up for our 13-storey building.
“He has also approved another N2 billion for faculty development here in Yabatech.
“We are transforming from one-storey and two-storey structures to high-rise buildings.”
