The Executive Secretary of National Universities Commission (NUC) Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, has lamented the paucity of universities in the country.
He said the number of universities in the country is grossly inadequate to meet its present demand for tertiary education.
Rasheed made this known during his presentation for operational licences for two new universities to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, bringing the total number of universities in the country to 205.
According to him, Nigeria can only account for 5.06 per cent of students in the nation’s ivory towers, leaving the remaining 94 per cent in public universities.
The NUC boss further justified the commission’s decision to approve the University of Education, Ijanikin/Epe and the Lagos State University of Science and Technology, by noting that Lagos government has been exceptional in the running of the Lagos State University for the past 39 years.