The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, on Monday, received the letter of approval from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to commence training of nurses and midwives at the Edo State College of Nursing Sciences in Benin City, Edo State.
Handing the letter over to Obaseki at the Government House in Benin City, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Obehi Akoria and the Provost, Edo State College of Nursing Sciences, Prof. Mrs. Pat Ukaigwe, said the College will collaborate with Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey, United States on the programme and certification.
According to Obaseki, the state government’s aim with the institution is to train a workforce for the international market, urging the college’s management to ensure that the quality offered in the Institution must be above the national standard.
Noting that the school’s benchmark should be the premium and premier nursing school in the country, the governor noted: “To achieve this, the Edo State Government is giving you a free hand to operate without interference. We will not interfere but expect great performance from both the professional and management standpoint and expect the school to run according to international best practices.
“We will not interfere but will scrutinize your activities, and if we find anything questionable, we will invite the necessary and relevant security agencies to take charge.”
The provost of the institution, Prof. Mrs. Ukaigwe who commended the Governor for building a world-class nursing school in Edo State, said the management will work round the clock to ensure the school meets international standards.
She noted, “We are working to collaborate with my University abroad where I came from. They supported me during my collaboration in Ghana and in Liberia. I will collaborate with them and the proposal is to co-share the programme and the certificate will read Fairleigh Dickinson University Teaneck, New Jersey.
“We will also seek the permission of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to allow the Institution to be a continuing education provider. This will enable the institution to run multiple programmes including programmes that will help nurses and staff to renew their licenses. Also, we are working to have the school as a centre for international exams and the application is on for them to access the institution.
“We would be in line with guidelines from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, which has given a mandate that, come 2023, all Diploma programmes would adhere to collegiate standards. They gave us two options; the options are to either do HND or a Bachelor’s Degree. Our proposal is to embrace the Bachelor’s Degree option.”
Noting that the institution has zero-tolerance for indiscipline, the Provost said, “To succeed as an institution, we have to run the school as a business, conform to the regulations of Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria and work to secure the premises and all the equipment in the school.”
