CO-OPERATIVE EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CO-OPERATIVE ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT (CEM), INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY (IMT) ENUGU.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
The planning of the establishment of Institute of Management and Technology Enugu, there not in progressive forms till 1967 to a college of technology up to the ordinary diploma level.
An institution of administration which provide short come in-service training courses for civil servants of various grades and a co-operative college offered a certificate course in co-operative studies to co-operative inspector from the ministry of industry, trade and co-operative.
These institutions were separated and separately located. The college of technology was part of the ministry of Education and was controlled and directed by that ministry, similarly, the institute of administration was controlled by the ministry of establishment, while the co-operative college was directly under the ministry of rural development.
All the staff of these institutions were civil servants, they were posted and re-posted from one department to another according to their needs or civil services.
However, after 1970, they arose the need for higher institution of learning to up grade the training in the technological and managerial fields which there were severe need for manpower development. The future graduates in the technology and management and allied field would be more effective by functional training than the institute of administrations.
To the founding father, the main purpose became the maximization of the management efficiency, professional and technical expertise and also the acquisition of the additional tools for these.
The close coupling of the management and technology in the new objectives was the needless to say and not the fruitful. The management and technology of then needs training for the satisfaction and fulfillment of itself, and in the world it applied science entails more problems of both moral and ecological significance. Later, they can no longer afford to be the narrow minded professional concerned with only machine and structure. He must understand the relationship and social setting of his position with his industrial environment. He must work with other people, be acquainted with the basic personnel and labour matters. This was as a result of these idea of an autonomous, IMT was conceived.
In the process of performing these, the executive council of the state agreed to merge the former college of teaching, the institute of the administration and up grade their functions in 1971. Both the institute and college were in same under unified control of the cabinet office on 1st April 1972. In October of the same year, a provisional council for the purpose of a new institute was appointed by the administrator of then east central state, the council who was in charge with the responsibility of determining the recommendations to the government to appropriate structure of an autonomous institution that would produce the high quality of technologists and technicians. The council pursued this task with vigour and determination and in early April 1973, they submitted its findings. On 31st May 1973, an Edict No. 10 titled the “Institution of Management and Technology Edict 1973” was promulgated. The edict took effect from 1st July 1973, and thus gave birth to Institute of Management and Technology while its first chairman was Dr. Ukwu.
