The Federal Government is moving to overhaul agricultural education in tertiary institutions, replacing the traditional classroom heavy model with an 80 per cent practical training structure designed to make Nigerian graduates more employable and productive.

The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Thursday while receiving the report of the National Implementation Committee on the Review and Development of Agricultural Curricula for Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria.

The reform represents a sharp departure from the previous 70 per cent theoretical and 30 per cent practical model, with the government now allocating 80 per cent of training to practical work and 20 per cent to theory.

The scale of the review is reflected in the number of new training instruments produced.

According to the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education, Prof Idris Bugaje, the exercise generated 36 new and reviewed ND and HND curricula, three NCE curricula and 31 National Occupational Standards (NOS).

Bugaje said 27 of the 31 occupational standards were developed from scratch, while four existing standards were reviewed, providing a substantially expanded skills framework for agricultural training.

The minister said the shift was aimed at addressing the gap between what students learn in classrooms and the skills required in the agricultural economy, stressing that young Nigerians must leave institutions with practical competencies that can be deployed beyond the classroom.

According to Alausa, the reform is part of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and seeks to reposition agriculture from predominantly academic training into a skills based pathway capable of producing a better trained workforce and creating productive opportunities for young Nigerians.

He said, “The shift to 80 per cent practical training is a major step towards equipping our youths with relevant skills and advancing the economic objectives of the Renewed Hope Agenda.”

The minister, however, warned that curriculum reform alone would not deliver the desired transformation, calling for a comprehensive rollout involving industry players, academics, teachers and other stakeholders.

He also stressed the need to train teachers and provide institutions with the equipment and other support required to deliver the new practical oriented curricula.

With 70 new or reviewed training instruments, comprising 39 curricula and 31 occupational standards, emerging from the exercise, the government is betting that the new framework will help close the skills gap in agriculture and convert Nigeria’s vast agricultural potential into practical economic opportunities.

Alausa assured that the Ministry of Education would work with NBTE, tertiary institutions, industry and other stakeholders to ensure that the reviewed curricula move beyond policy documents and are effectively implemented in classrooms, laboratories, farms and other practical training environments.

He said the ultimate goal was to produce young Nigerians with skills that can be applied directly in the agricultural economy, strengthening the sector while contributing to employment, productivity and national development.