The Federal Government of Nigeria has officially inaugurated a transformative educational initiative, the Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Business Incubation Certification (EIBIC) programme. The launch event, held at the TETFund Auditorium in Abuja, marks a strategic phase-one rollout across 14 universities nationwide, aiming to fundamentally reshape the academic experience.
Under the theme “Driving Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Building the Next Generation of Leaders,” the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, formally introduced the programme. He emphasized that EIBIC is designed to systematically embed entrepreneurial education into all academic disciplines, from engineering and medicine to law and the creative arts. This move is intended to equip every student with the innovative thinking and practical skills necessary to convert their knowledge and passions into viable enterprises, thereby driving national productivity and economic growth.
Minister Alausa stated the programme’s alignment with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision for a resilient, knowledge-driven economy. He called on university vice-chancellors and administrators to fully integrate and institutionalize the framework. The initiative, which will test every student’s capacity for innovation, has been launched in selected institutions across all six geopolitical zones.
The minister commended key stakeholders, including the National Universities Commission, TETFund, and industry partners, for their roles. He specifically acknowledged Professor Sunday Adebisi and his team for conceptualizing the programme. In a related development, Sahara Group, an EIBIC partner, awarded $12,000 grants to three University of Lagos academics—Professor Sunday Adebisi, Dr. Victor Odumuyiwa, and Professor AbdulHameed Sulaimon—to scale successful programmes that have already trained over 20,000 youths in advanced AI and digital skills.
This educational advancement follows other recent national developments, such as when the Nigerian Army opens new recruitment drives and the Health Minister denies certain policy rumors. The EIBIC programme represents a critical step in fostering a culture of self-reliance and innovation, ensuring graduates are not only job seekers but also job creators, solidifying a future that is skld 25: rooted in entrepreneurial excellence and sustainable development.
