Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of United Nigeria Airlines, Professor Obiora Okonkwo, has called on Nigerian universities to urgently overhaul their academic system by placing greater emphasis on practical skills, innovation and entrepreneurship rather than the mere acquisition of certificates.
Okonkwo said the country’s higher education institutions must produce graduates equipped with competencies that address real-world challenges, improve employability and drive national development.
He made the call on Tuesday while delivering the 14th Convocation Lecture of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), titled “Functional Education and the Nigerian Project: Strategic Human Capital Development for National Renewal,” at the Alfa Belgore Multipurpose Hall, Ado-Ekiti.
According to him, the relevance of education should no longer be measured by the number of certificates awarded but by graduates’ ability to solve problems, create value and contribute meaningfully to economic growth.
He advocated a transition from content-based teaching to competency-driven learning that develops critical thinking, creativity, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, ethical leadership and practical problem-solving abilities.
Okonkwo stressed that government and universities must invest more in technical and vocational education, modern laboratories, engineering workshops, research facilities and other infrastructure capable of exposing students to practical experiences relevant to their professions.
The United Nigeria Airlines chairman also urged stronger collaboration between universities, industries and government to ensure academic programmes remain aligned with labour market realities and emerging economic opportunities.
He said such partnerships would provide students with practical workplace experience before graduation, enhance their employability and stimulate indigenous innovation and technology development.
Highlighting United Nigeria Airlines’ collaboration with ABUAD, Okonkwo said students of the university’s Aeronautical and Aerospace Engineering programme currently undergo six months of industrial training at the airline’s engineering facility in Lagos, where they receive hands-on experience in aircraft maintenance, avionics, aviation safety and professional engineering practice.
He challenged more private sector organisations to establish similar partnerships through internships, apprenticeships, research collaborations and technology transfer initiatives.
Okonkwo further called on universities to commercialise research outputs, stressing that higher institutions should move beyond knowledge generation to producing practical solutions capable of addressing Nigeria’s developmental challenges.
Responding, Founder of ABUAD, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), said the lecture reinforced his long-held concern over the disconnect between university education and the practical skills graduates require after leaving school.
Babalola urged the Federal Government to review university curricula to ensure graduates acquire professional competencies capable of making them job creators rather than job seekers.
He also advocated stricter regulatory measures in the approval of private universities, insisting that licensing authorities should conduct thorough physical inspections to verify the availability of adequate infrastructure before granting operational licences.
The legal icon disclosed that he had constituted a panel comprising eight vice-chancellors to recommend additional measures for strengthening ABUAD’s academic standards.
Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor of ABUAD, Professor Smaranda Olarinde, described the convocation lecture as a timely platform for examining how education can better develop the skills, character and innovative capacity required for Nigeria’s sustainable development.
She commended Okonkwo and United Nigeria Airlines for supporting practical education through their partnership with the university and called for sustained collaboration between academia and industry to produce graduates capable of meeting the demands of the modern economy.