Curriculum innovation for sustainable skills development in Nigerian higher education

This study examined curriculum innovation as a mechanism for sustainable skills development in Nigerian higher education. The study was motivated by persistent concerns about graduate employability, skills mismatches, and the limited empirical evidence on how curriculum innovation contributes to the development of sustainable competencies. A quantitative survey design was adopted. The study population comprised 1,000 participants, from which 400 university lecturers, curriculum planners, and industry professionals were selected through multistage and purposive sampling techniques across twelve higher education institutions in North-Central Nigeria. Data were collected using a validated 20-item questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.80. Mean, standard deviation, one-way ANOVA, effect size, and Tukey's HSD post hoc test were used for data analysis at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that curriculum innovation significantly promotes the development of critical thinking, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, creativity, problem solving, and graduate adaptability. Significant differences were found between lecturers and industry professionals regarding both the perceived contributions of curriculum innovation and the challenges affecting its implementation, although the effect sizes were small. Major constraints included inadequate funding, weak university-industry collaboration, limited technological infrastructure, and insufficient staff development. The study concludes that curriculum innovation can strengthen sustainable skills development when supported.