The Federal Ministry of Education has denied harmonizing the
degrees and higher national diploma awarded by
universities and polytechnics.
A spokesperson for the ministry denied recent reports that
the dichotomy between Bachelors and HNDs had been
abolished, saying HND holders must meet new requirements
to attain the Bachelors level.
Speaking to Newsmen on Friday, Benjamin Goong,
said the ministry lacked the power to end the inequality.
He however said the government had taken steps to bridge
the gap to ensure HND holders are treated fairly when
seeking for jobs.
“Two weeks ago, the ministry sent a memo to the National
Council of Establishments (NCE) to institute a bridging
program for the HND holders and the proposal was
approved.
“The bridging program is for HND holders who can either
attend the National Teachers Institute (NTI) or any
institution offering post-graduate diploma programs, before
they can attain the level graduates can attain in the public
sector.
“As per the approved memo, after the bridging program,
HND holders will now be offered jobs from grade level 8 and
finish at grade level 17 like graduates. Before now, HND
holders were only allowed grade level 7 and finish at grade
level 14.
“That is as far as it goes for now regarding the B.Sc and
HND dichotomy. Both are still very different from each
other,” he said.
An education analyst, Dorothy Oseni, said creation of jobs
for both B.Sc and HND holders was the surest way of
bridging the gap between both classes of educated people.
“When the government, industries and companies no longer
discriminate against HND holders in the labour market, the
dichotomy will die a natural death,” she said
