Introduction
Education is a systematic process by which an individual is provided with the opportunity to acquire knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and attitudes which develop progressively with a view to:
Ø preparing him to be useful to himself and his society;
Ø aiding him to pursue a career;
Ø heightening his thirst for more learning;
Ø equipping him with the ability to respond positively to different situations; and
Ø helping him develop creativity.
Adeogun (2000) defines education as the process of developing cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains of an individual in order to make him or her acquire skills and knowledge that are relevant to him or her and to the society in which he or she lives. Education, according to Ukeje (1986), in Nwaubani (2000), is universally accepted as one of the catalysts for social, economic and technological development, giving citizens opportunities to be equipped for proper adjustment in their environment. By encouraging and sustaining individual as well as societal survival and growth, it motivates development.
Human development, achievable through formal, informal and non-formal education, is vital to national survival. Ejiogu (1986) emphasised the “incontrovertible” fact that education plays a “significantly positive role” in increasing an individual’s and the society’s ability to be productive as much as the unquestionable truth that “education is an inescapable and essential part of the developmental process” was stressed by Oguntoye (2000). Development is the goal of every nation, large or small, on the face of the earth. In 1963, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) stated that development is growth plus change, which involves material, mental, psychological, physical, institutional and organisational innovations. The National Policy on Education (2004) describes education as an instrument "per excellence" for effecting national development. For education to truly function as an instrument "per excellence" for effecting national development (and sustainable national development, at that) it needs to be planned and rationally so.
1 The Concept of Educational Planning
Planning is a process of determining goals and objectives and courses of action to achieve those goals and objectives. It is the process of preparing a set of decisions for future action directed at the achievement of specific goals by optimal means. It is also a conscious decision-making action taken against the future. Carlson (1982), in Ejiogu (1990), opined that planning is the dreaming, practical thinking, scheming and scheduling of the actions and achievements that would be performed in order to achieve the objectives for which the enterprise was set up. Planning is a sine qua non in education.
Curle (1969), in Adeogun (2000), opined that educational planning is the planning of the educational system, its curriculum and instruction, its expansion improvement, the balance of its different parts, its auxiliary services, among them, research and textbook production. Citing Adesina (1981), in Bello (2006), educational planning is the process of applying scientific or rational procedure to the process of educational growth and development so as to ensure the efficiency and the effectiveness of the educational system. Educational planning, according to Coombs (1974), in Bello (2006), is the application of rational, systematic analysis to the process of educational development with the aim of making education more effective and efficient in responding to the needs and goals of its students and society.
It is said that educational planning in many African countries is a response to social and manpower needs. This paper discourses this statement, in two parts, with particular reference to Nigeria.
2 Educational Planning in Nigeria
The country christened Nigeria (by Mary Flora Shaw in 1897, during the era of British colonial rule) is a West African sovereignty lying between latitudes 4° and 14° North and longitudes 3° and 15° East with a land mass measuring about 923,768 square kilometres and a population of 144.7 million (The World Bank, 2006). Nigeria has the largest population of any country in Africa and the greatest diversity of cultures, ways of life, cities and terrain. She is the 14th largest country in Africa with her coastline, on the Gulf of Guinea, stretching 774 kilometres (480 miles). Nigeria shares her international border of 4,470 kilometres (2513 miles) with four neighbours: Chad, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger. Around 48 per cent of the population lives in urban areas. The population growth rate in 2007 was 2.38 per cent; life expectancy at birth was 47 years for men, 48 years for women. The adult literacy rate is below 60 per cent and about 76 per cent of children of primary school age attend school. In December 1991, the federal capital moved from the coastal city of Lagos to Abuja in the centrally located Federal Capital Territory. Her supreme educational document, the National Policy on Education (2004) emphasises how vital education is to national development. It states that Nigeria recognises the need for functional education. Nigeria has the goal of building:
· a free and democratic society;
· a just and egalitarian society;
· a united, strong and self-reliant nation;
· a great and dynamic economy; and
· a land full of bright opportunities for all citizens.
The Nigerian government accords education some form of planning and as an indicator of her effort, she ranked a pitiful 158th among 177 countries compared in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) rating in human development (Human Development Report for 2007/8). Nigeria’s state is a perfect picture of what obtains in developing countries which abound in the African continent.
The countries of Africa are characterised by low per capita income, social and cultural pluralism, multilingualism, poor nutrition and health, agrarian or agro-based societies, rising rate of unemployment, rapidly increasing population, and shortage of necessary human resources. Having listed what obtains in African countries (for better understanding of the issue being discussed), the writer goes on with the discourse on educational planning as a response to social and to manpower needs.
3 Educational Planning as a Response to Needs
The most comprehensive definition of educational planning is that given by Coombs (1974), quoted earlier, which states that it is the application of rational, systematic analysis to the process of educational development with the aim of making education more effective and efficient in responding to the needs and goals of its students and society. This is very apt. Thus, educational planning, if it would fulfil its purpose, must respond to needs.
3.1 Educational Planning: A Response to Social Needs
The developmental challenges facing many developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa are both daunting and multi-dimensional. While it is true that action is required on many fronts, cutting across all these challenges and central to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), is the monumental task of achieving Education for All (EFA). Educational planning as a response to social needs will be examined under three headings.
Education is a systematic process by which an individual is provided with the opportunity to acquire knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and attitudes which develop progressively with a view to:
Ø preparing him to be useful to himself and his society;
Ø aiding him to pursue a career;
Ø heightening his thirst for more learning;
Ø equipping him with the ability to respond positively to different situations; and
Ø helping him develop creativity.
Adeogun (2000) defines education as the process of developing cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains of an individual in order to make him or her acquire skills and knowledge that are relevant to him or her and to the society in which he or she lives. Education, according to Ukeje (1986), in Nwaubani (2000), is universally accepted as one of the catalysts for social, economic and technological development, giving citizens opportunities to be equipped for proper adjustment in their environment. By encouraging and sustaining individual as well as societal survival and growth, it motivates development.
Human development, achievable through formal, informal and non-formal education, is vital to national survival. Ejiogu (1986) emphasised the “incontrovertible” fact that education plays a “significantly positive role” in increasing an individual’s and the society’s ability to be productive as much as the unquestionable truth that “education is an inescapable and essential part of the developmental process” was stressed by Oguntoye (2000). Development is the goal of every nation, large or small, on the face of the earth. In 1963, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) stated that development is growth plus change, which involves material, mental, psychological, physical, institutional and organisational innovations. The National Policy on Education (2004) describes education as an instrument "per excellence" for effecting national development. For education to truly function as an instrument "per excellence" for effecting national development (and sustainable national development, at that) it needs to be planned and rationally so.
1 The Concept of Educational Planning
Planning is a process of determining goals and objectives and courses of action to achieve those goals and objectives. It is the process of preparing a set of decisions for future action directed at the achievement of specific goals by optimal means. It is also a conscious decision-making action taken against the future. Carlson (1982), in Ejiogu (1990), opined that planning is the dreaming, practical thinking, scheming and scheduling of the actions and achievements that would be performed in order to achieve the objectives for which the enterprise was set up. Planning is a sine qua non in education.
Curle (1969), in Adeogun (2000), opined that educational planning is the planning of the educational system, its curriculum and instruction, its expansion improvement, the balance of its different parts, its auxiliary services, among them, research and textbook production. Citing Adesina (1981), in Bello (2006), educational planning is the process of applying scientific or rational procedure to the process of educational growth and development so as to ensure the efficiency and the effectiveness of the educational system. Educational planning, according to Coombs (1974), in Bello (2006), is the application of rational, systematic analysis to the process of educational development with the aim of making education more effective and efficient in responding to the needs and goals of its students and society.
It is said that educational planning in many African countries is a response to social and manpower needs. This paper discourses this statement, in two parts, with particular reference to Nigeria.
2 Educational Planning in Nigeria
The country christened Nigeria (by Mary Flora Shaw in 1897, during the era of British colonial rule) is a West African sovereignty lying between latitudes 4° and 14° North and longitudes 3° and 15° East with a land mass measuring about 923,768 square kilometres and a population of 144.7 million (The World Bank, 2006). Nigeria has the largest population of any country in Africa and the greatest diversity of cultures, ways of life, cities and terrain. She is the 14th largest country in Africa with her coastline, on the Gulf of Guinea, stretching 774 kilometres (480 miles). Nigeria shares her international border of 4,470 kilometres (2513 miles) with four neighbours: Chad, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger. Around 48 per cent of the population lives in urban areas. The population growth rate in 2007 was 2.38 per cent; life expectancy at birth was 47 years for men, 48 years for women. The adult literacy rate is below 60 per cent and about 76 per cent of children of primary school age attend school. In December 1991, the federal capital moved from the coastal city of Lagos to Abuja in the centrally located Federal Capital Territory. Her supreme educational document, the National Policy on Education (2004) emphasises how vital education is to national development. It states that Nigeria recognises the need for functional education. Nigeria has the goal of building:
· a free and democratic society;
· a just and egalitarian society;
· a united, strong and self-reliant nation;
· a great and dynamic economy; and
· a land full of bright opportunities for all citizens.
The Nigerian government accords education some form of planning and as an indicator of her effort, she ranked a pitiful 158th among 177 countries compared in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) rating in human development (Human Development Report for 2007/8). Nigeria’s state is a perfect picture of what obtains in developing countries which abound in the African continent.
The countries of Africa are characterised by low per capita income, social and cultural pluralism, multilingualism, poor nutrition and health, agrarian or agro-based societies, rising rate of unemployment, rapidly increasing population, and shortage of necessary human resources. Having listed what obtains in African countries (for better understanding of the issue being discussed), the writer goes on with the discourse on educational planning as a response to social and to manpower needs.
3 Educational Planning as a Response to Needs
The most comprehensive definition of educational planning is that given by Coombs (1974), quoted earlier, which states that it is the application of rational, systematic analysis to the process of educational development with the aim of making education more effective and efficient in responding to the needs and goals of its students and society. This is very apt. Thus, educational planning, if it would fulfil its purpose, must respond to needs.
3.1 Educational Planning: A Response to Social Needs
The developmental challenges facing many developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa are both daunting and multi-dimensional. While it is true that action is required on many fronts, cutting across all these challenges and central to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), is the monumental task of achieving Education for All (EFA). Educational planning as a response to social needs will be examined under three headings.
3.1.1 The Universal Primary Education (UPE) Scheme
A number of African nations have made giant strides in expanding their educational systems. Some of them have expanded their systems especially at the primary level in response to the 1961 Addis Ababa Conference that set for the continent the target of achieving free and compulsory universal primary education by the year 1980. The Murtala-Obasanjo military regime introduced the Universal Primary Education (UPE) scheme at the macro level in 1976, in Lagos. Its purpose was to eradicate illiteracy at the soonest possible time. Poor planning and inaccurate projections however led to the demise of the program not too long after its launching.
3.1.2 The Universal Basic Education (UBE) Programme
Universal Basic Education (UBE) emerged as a consequence to the Jomtien Declaration on Education for All (1990) and was reaffirmed by the Dakar Declaration (2000). There had been a global concern that educational policies in many parts of the world ignored early childhood care and pre-school education and restricted the goals of primary education. In principle, the UBE programme should broadly enable the achievement of what is defined as the EFA (education for all) framework. Uko-Aviomoh et al (2007) describe Universal Basic Education as the transmission of fundamental knowledge to all facets of the Nigerian society from generation to generation. According to the implementation guidelines released by the Federal Ministry of Education in February 2000, the programme aims at achieving five objectives which include:
1. Providing free, compulsory, universal basic education for every Nigerian child of school age group;
2. Reducing, drastically, drop out rate from the formal school system through improved relevance and efficiency; and
3. Ensuring the acquisition of the appropriate levels of literacy, manipulative and life skills (as well as the ethical, moral and civic values) needed for laying the foundation for life long learning.
The Legislature gave a legal framework for the operation of basic education in Nigeria through its passing of the Universal Basic Education Bill in May 2003. It legislates on the right of every child to have access to and the completion of free basic education of good quality (Abani, 2003). The UBE is a perfect example of educational planning in Nigeria (as an African country) being a response to social needs. The UBE is intended to be nationwide, free and compulsory, implying that appropriate types of opportunities will be provided for the basic education of every Nigerian child of school age.
3.1.3 The Ten-Year Education Sector Plan
The Federal Ministry of Education has developed a National Action Plan for EFA in collaboration with the states. The Education Sector Analysis has been carried out to feed sound analytical basis of educational reform and for the development of the EFA and sector-wide plans. These plans set forth a number of ambitious policy goals for 2015 and necessary implementation strategies. Within the framework of EFA action planning, a policy and strategy simulation model was designed along the following premises:
# early childhood care and education (ECCE) would be expanded , especially for 70 per cent gross enrolment ratio (GER) for those aged 5 and with due attention given to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children;
# free and compulsory Universal Basic Education (primary and junior secondary education) will be achieved by 2015, with particular emphasis on girls and disadvantaged children and through the introduction of school feeding programmes at primary and junior secondary education levels;
# adult literacy rate will improve by 50 percent by 2015, while ensuring gender equity and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults;
# appropriate learning and life skills programmes will be provided through the expansion of non formal education and post-basic technical and vocational education and training (TVET) opportunities;
# gender disparities will be reduced at all levels of education including higher education by 2015, and gender equality achieved for primary, junior and senior secondary education by 2015; and
# all aspects of the quality of education will be improved, particularly through a free provision of textbooks at primary and junior secondary education, the amelioration of pre- and in-service teacher training, the mitigation of the HIV and AIDS pandemic and the improvement of learning conditions and environment including catering to the needs of learners requiring special attention.
In response to the emerging needs and priorities of Nigeria’s education system in conformity with the mandate of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the UNESCO National Education Support Strategy (UNESS) for Nigeria is developed as a long-term cooperation framework for supporting the implementation of Nigeria’s 10-year Education Sector Plan (2006-2015).
3.2 Educational Planning: A Response to Manpower Needs
Manpower means both the quantity of people and their skill content acquired through education, training and experience. To achieve development, manpower is highly needed. Skilled manpower, at that. This is why in educational planning and manpower needs receive premium consideration just as social ones. Educational planning in Nigeria as a response to manpower needs will be considered under three headings.
3.2.1 The Ashby Commission
“To conduct an investigation into Nigeria’s needs in the field of post-School certificate and higher education over the next twenty years”, a commission was set up in April, 1959, under Sir Eric Ashby, Master of Clare College, Cambridge University and ex-President/Vice-chancellor of Queen’s University, Belfast, a man famous for his experience and interest in higher education. It was a nine-man commission made up of leading intellectuals from Nigeria, Britain and the United States of America. Employing the services of five experts, the commission sought, as well, to prevent developmental imbalance and to emphasise the need for a united educational system. In September, 1960, its comprehensive report titled “Investment in Education” was submitted. The report aimed at:
# Upgrading Nigerians who were already in employment but had need for further education; and
# Designing a system of post-secondary education which would, as a first objective, produce before 1970 the flow of high-level manpower, which Nigeria would need (Taiwo, 1980).
The commission’s recommendations led to the establishment of national universities, the National Universities Commission, the National Manpower Board and trade centres, some of which metamorphosed into polytechnics. The expansion of education, the diversification of the curricula (introduction of technical and agricultural education), the commencement of correspondence and distance education and the provision of teacher education and in-service which resulted responded to manpower needs.
3.2.2 The National Development Plans
The First National Development Plan (1962-1968) was borne out of the need to combat the shortage of manpower existing at the time and the need to fill the inevitable vacancies created when the foreigners left. The Second National Development Plan (1970-1974) was based on the idea of national reconciliation and reconstruction. It strove to expand middle-level education and increase university enrolment in science, engineering and technology courses. The Third National Development Plan (1975-1980) has the accelerated development of universities and polytechnics credited to it. Reduction in the level of unemployment, increased income and productivity and the development of technology were among the objectives of the Fourth National Development Plan (1981-1985). The Fifth National Development Plan (1986-1990) aimed at creating a more self-reliant economy and to this end the federal government increased university funding and established universities of technology and of agriculture.
3.2.3 The Provision of Higher Education
Higher education refers to learning opportunities given to an individual at a university, polytechnic, monotechnic, college of education and other institutions of higher learning after he or she has successfully completed six years of secondary education. The Nigerian University system sprang out of the need for the development of high-level manpower to take the challenge of nation building after independence. It is the hope of the people that the universities shall produce the right type of manpower in sufficient quantity and quality (Fadipe, 2000, in Abdulkareem, 2002) for the transformation of the nation from a developing country to a developed country. The curricula or programmes in these universities have witnessed marked transformation' over the years in response to the needs of the Nigeria society and changes in disciplinary knowledge (Okebukola, 1998, in Abdulkareem, 2002). The number of universities has increased phenomenally over the years in Nigeria in order to take care of the human resource capacity needs of the nation. There has been appreciable improvement in the development of human resources in Science and Technology disciplines, especially in the federal universities. This is probably in anticipation of the much-needed development in the country. Planning for development of higher education was and still is based on response to the economy’s manpower needs.
4 Conclusion
Madumere (1997) felt that the essence of planning education among other things was to produce the right manpower needed for the labour force. No doubt, the establishment of universities in Nigeria and expansion of educational programmes at different levels are based on social and political pressures as well economic consideration for manpower needs. Many students seek admission into the universities to read courses for which they are not suitable; while many graduates roam about the street without jobs. Bello (2006) rightly advised that for a country in her age of development, Nigeria should plan her education as a response to both social and manpower needs.
References
1 Abani, C. (2003). Progress towards achieving EFA in Nigeria. A Contribution to the 2003/4 EFA Monitoring Report. Retrieved April the 13th, 2008.
http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/files/25755/10734708701Progress_towards_achieving_EFA_in_Nigeria.doc/Progress%2Btowards%2Bachieving%2BEFA%2Bin%2BNigeria.doc
2. Abdulkareem, A. Y. (2002). Nigerian Universities and the Development of Human Resources. A research report.
A number of African nations have made giant strides in expanding their educational systems. Some of them have expanded their systems especially at the primary level in response to the 1961 Addis Ababa Conference that set for the continent the target of achieving free and compulsory universal primary education by the year 1980. The Murtala-Obasanjo military regime introduced the Universal Primary Education (UPE) scheme at the macro level in 1976, in Lagos. Its purpose was to eradicate illiteracy at the soonest possible time. Poor planning and inaccurate projections however led to the demise of the program not too long after its launching.
3.1.2 The Universal Basic Education (UBE) Programme
Universal Basic Education (UBE) emerged as a consequence to the Jomtien Declaration on Education for All (1990) and was reaffirmed by the Dakar Declaration (2000). There had been a global concern that educational policies in many parts of the world ignored early childhood care and pre-school education and restricted the goals of primary education. In principle, the UBE programme should broadly enable the achievement of what is defined as the EFA (education for all) framework. Uko-Aviomoh et al (2007) describe Universal Basic Education as the transmission of fundamental knowledge to all facets of the Nigerian society from generation to generation. According to the implementation guidelines released by the Federal Ministry of Education in February 2000, the programme aims at achieving five objectives which include:
1. Providing free, compulsory, universal basic education for every Nigerian child of school age group;
2. Reducing, drastically, drop out rate from the formal school system through improved relevance and efficiency; and
3. Ensuring the acquisition of the appropriate levels of literacy, manipulative and life skills (as well as the ethical, moral and civic values) needed for laying the foundation for life long learning.
The Legislature gave a legal framework for the operation of basic education in Nigeria through its passing of the Universal Basic Education Bill in May 2003. It legislates on the right of every child to have access to and the completion of free basic education of good quality (Abani, 2003). The UBE is a perfect example of educational planning in Nigeria (as an African country) being a response to social needs. The UBE is intended to be nationwide, free and compulsory, implying that appropriate types of opportunities will be provided for the basic education of every Nigerian child of school age.
3.1.3 The Ten-Year Education Sector Plan
The Federal Ministry of Education has developed a National Action Plan for EFA in collaboration with the states. The Education Sector Analysis has been carried out to feed sound analytical basis of educational reform and for the development of the EFA and sector-wide plans. These plans set forth a number of ambitious policy goals for 2015 and necessary implementation strategies. Within the framework of EFA action planning, a policy and strategy simulation model was designed along the following premises:
# early childhood care and education (ECCE) would be expanded , especially for 70 per cent gross enrolment ratio (GER) for those aged 5 and with due attention given to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children;
# free and compulsory Universal Basic Education (primary and junior secondary education) will be achieved by 2015, with particular emphasis on girls and disadvantaged children and through the introduction of school feeding programmes at primary and junior secondary education levels;
# adult literacy rate will improve by 50 percent by 2015, while ensuring gender equity and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults;
# appropriate learning and life skills programmes will be provided through the expansion of non formal education and post-basic technical and vocational education and training (TVET) opportunities;
# gender disparities will be reduced at all levels of education including higher education by 2015, and gender equality achieved for primary, junior and senior secondary education by 2015; and
# all aspects of the quality of education will be improved, particularly through a free provision of textbooks at primary and junior secondary education, the amelioration of pre- and in-service teacher training, the mitigation of the HIV and AIDS pandemic and the improvement of learning conditions and environment including catering to the needs of learners requiring special attention.
In response to the emerging needs and priorities of Nigeria’s education system in conformity with the mandate of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the UNESCO National Education Support Strategy (UNESS) for Nigeria is developed as a long-term cooperation framework for supporting the implementation of Nigeria’s 10-year Education Sector Plan (2006-2015).
3.2 Educational Planning: A Response to Manpower Needs
Manpower means both the quantity of people and their skill content acquired through education, training and experience. To achieve development, manpower is highly needed. Skilled manpower, at that. This is why in educational planning and manpower needs receive premium consideration just as social ones. Educational planning in Nigeria as a response to manpower needs will be considered under three headings.
3.2.1 The Ashby Commission
“To conduct an investigation into Nigeria’s needs in the field of post-School certificate and higher education over the next twenty years”, a commission was set up in April, 1959, under Sir Eric Ashby, Master of Clare College, Cambridge University and ex-President/Vice-chancellor of Queen’s University, Belfast, a man famous for his experience and interest in higher education. It was a nine-man commission made up of leading intellectuals from Nigeria, Britain and the United States of America. Employing the services of five experts, the commission sought, as well, to prevent developmental imbalance and to emphasise the need for a united educational system. In September, 1960, its comprehensive report titled “Investment in Education” was submitted. The report aimed at:
# Upgrading Nigerians who were already in employment but had need for further education; and
# Designing a system of post-secondary education which would, as a first objective, produce before 1970 the flow of high-level manpower, which Nigeria would need (Taiwo, 1980).
The commission’s recommendations led to the establishment of national universities, the National Universities Commission, the National Manpower Board and trade centres, some of which metamorphosed into polytechnics. The expansion of education, the diversification of the curricula (introduction of technical and agricultural education), the commencement of correspondence and distance education and the provision of teacher education and in-service which resulted responded to manpower needs.
3.2.2 The National Development Plans
The First National Development Plan (1962-1968) was borne out of the need to combat the shortage of manpower existing at the time and the need to fill the inevitable vacancies created when the foreigners left. The Second National Development Plan (1970-1974) was based on the idea of national reconciliation and reconstruction. It strove to expand middle-level education and increase university enrolment in science, engineering and technology courses. The Third National Development Plan (1975-1980) has the accelerated development of universities and polytechnics credited to it. Reduction in the level of unemployment, increased income and productivity and the development of technology were among the objectives of the Fourth National Development Plan (1981-1985). The Fifth National Development Plan (1986-1990) aimed at creating a more self-reliant economy and to this end the federal government increased university funding and established universities of technology and of agriculture.
3.2.3 The Provision of Higher Education
Higher education refers to learning opportunities given to an individual at a university, polytechnic, monotechnic, college of education and other institutions of higher learning after he or she has successfully completed six years of secondary education. The Nigerian University system sprang out of the need for the development of high-level manpower to take the challenge of nation building after independence. It is the hope of the people that the universities shall produce the right type of manpower in sufficient quantity and quality (Fadipe, 2000, in Abdulkareem, 2002) for the transformation of the nation from a developing country to a developed country. The curricula or programmes in these universities have witnessed marked transformation' over the years in response to the needs of the Nigeria society and changes in disciplinary knowledge (Okebukola, 1998, in Abdulkareem, 2002). The number of universities has increased phenomenally over the years in Nigeria in order to take care of the human resource capacity needs of the nation. There has been appreciable improvement in the development of human resources in Science and Technology disciplines, especially in the federal universities. This is probably in anticipation of the much-needed development in the country. Planning for development of higher education was and still is based on response to the economy’s manpower needs.
4 Conclusion
Madumere (1997) felt that the essence of planning education among other things was to produce the right manpower needed for the labour force. No doubt, the establishment of universities in Nigeria and expansion of educational programmes at different levels are based on social and political pressures as well economic consideration for manpower needs. Many students seek admission into the universities to read courses for which they are not suitable; while many graduates roam about the street without jobs. Bello (2006) rightly advised that for a country in her age of development, Nigeria should plan her education as a response to both social and manpower needs.
References
1 Abani, C. (2003). Progress towards achieving EFA in Nigeria. A Contribution to the 2003/4 EFA Monitoring Report. Retrieved April the 13th, 2008.
http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/files/25755/10734708701Progress_towards_achieving_EFA_in_Nigeria.doc/Progress%2Btowards%2Bachieving%2BEFA%2Bin%2BNigeria.doc
2. Abdulkareem, A. Y. (2002). Nigerian Universities and the Development of Human Resources. A research report.
3. Adeogun, A. A. (2000). Politics of Educational Planning and Development in Nigeria. In Aloy Ejiogu and R. A. Alani (eds.), Emergent Issues in Nigerian Education. Vol. 3. Lagos: Mukugamu (Nig.) Company.
4. Bello, S. A. (2006). Fundamentals of Educational Planning and Model Building in Education. Lagos: Vitaman Educational Books.
5. Ejiogu, A. M. (1990). Educational Management: A Systems Approach. Lagos: Lantern Books.
6. Ejiogu, A. M. (1986). Landmarks in Educational Development in Nigeria. Lagos: Joja Educational Research and Publisher Limited.
7. Federal Ministry of Education (2000). Implementation Guidelines for Universal Basic Education (UBE) Programme. Abuja: Federal Ministry of Education.
8. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2004). National Policy on Education. Lagos: Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) Press.
9. Madumere, S. C. (1997). Educational Planning and Manpower Development. Lagos: Samuel Publishing Press.
10. Nwaubani, O. O. (2000). Women’s Education and National Development in Nigeria. In Aloy Ejiogu and R. A. Alani (eds.), Emergent Issues in Nigerian Education. Vol. 3. Lagos: Mukugamu (Nig.) Company.
11. Oguntoye, A. O. O. (2000). Funding Higher Education in Nigeria: Crucial Issues. In Aloy Ejiogu and R. A. Alani (eds.), Emergent Issues in Nigerian Education. Vol. 3. Lagos: Mukugamu (Nig.) Company.
12. Taiwo, C.O. (1980). The Nigerian Education System: Past, Present and Future. London: Nelson Publishers.
13. Uko-Aviomoh, E. E., Okoh, E. and Omatseye, B. O. J. (2007). Universal Basic Education (UBE) in Nigeria: An Appraisal. In Education. (Summer Edition.) Retrieved 13th April, 2008.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3673/is_200707/ai_n19511878
13. Uko-Aviomoh, E. E., Okoh, E. and Omatseye, B. O. J. (2007). Universal Basic Education (UBE) in Nigeria: An Appraisal. In Education. (Summer Edition.) Retrieved 13th April, 2008.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3673/is_200707/ai_n19511878
