Nigeria has become the first African country to tackle plagiarism nationwide with the internationally accepted top plagiarism detection software, Turnitin. The West African country’s 123 universities have completed the agreement to unite in the fight against plagiarism. The negotiation for the nationwide deployment of the software began in February between the management of Turnitin and Nigerian Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (CVC), on the nationwide rollout of the technology. Mike Fabarode, secretary general of CVC, told Daily Trust the vice chancellors decided to deploy the technology to tackle the plagiarism menace which he said had become a major problem and requires swift steps in order to stop it from spreading further. He said Nigerian universities, according to the terms of the agreement will pay NGN480 million (US$3 million) for the first three years. He added the staff of various Nigerian universities are undergoing training on the use of the software which he said will become fully operational from May 2013. According to him, the step was necessitated by the need to preserve the integrity of Nigeria’s education which stands the risk of being destroyed by consistent plagiarism. In a statement signed by Turnitin’s international vice president, Will Murray, he said Nigeria has become the latest country to join the growing list of countries such as UK, Pakistan, Turkey and several others that are using the software on a national basis. Murray said: "This move highlights the determination of Nigerian higher education institutions to address the issue of plagiarism and promote academic integrity and authenticity as well as enhance their reputations on an international level. "We're delighted to be assisting the CVC in establishing a national model for academic integrity in Nigeria and onsite training has already begun."

humanipo.com/news/4814/Nigerian-universities-to-deploy-top-plagiarism-detection-software

A little value is about to be added to tertiary education in the country. Very very thoughtful and most laudable feat, the only challenge I foresee is the human factor. Will our Profs put their feet down or look the other way during critical times? Only time will tell.

This is a very laudable action by the VCs. A large proportion of graduates from Universities in Nigeria barely carry out their project work themselves and often, when you read their thesis, it is full of copy and paste from the internet as those they 'sort' to write their project engage in this 'booming' business copying published works of other authors!

Swag

Another money making venture that may not benefit the end user.

^ What "money making venture" are we talking about here?

That is how they forced universities to buy zinox machines that have amounted to e-waste. What about the interactive boards? All na wash to enrich themselves from a central point.

Gud work. Now go ahead and stop the bribery and corruption in Naija Universities. Standardize textbooks and make it impossible for lecturers to force students to buy their crappy books.

otokx: That is how they forced universities to buy zinox machines that have amounted to e-waste. What about the interactive boards? All na wash to enrich themselves from a central point.

Keep talking, you're yet to make a valid point.

Dibiachukwu: Gud work. Now go ahead and stop the bribery and corruption in Naija Universities. Standardize textbooks and make it impossible for lecturers to force students to buy their crappy books.

It is not going to happen, not in the next 100 years.

^ It's a good start, that's enough for now.

Wonderful development! I never thought this day would come. Higher institutions across the UK already use Turnitin, and it is damn effective in detecting plagiarism. I only hope Nigerians (including lecturers) would not find a way to bypass the software.

The "human factor" like I said is always going to be the number one determinant but however it is, alarm bells are going to ring all over Nigeria's campuses seeing that every work regardless of what institution it was done in can now be subjected to independent and rigorous review to determine its originality. I tell you, with the mere knowledge that such stuff exists this close to home, Plagiarism especially at the highest level is about to pack its back within this shore.

If you did your studies in the UK, undergraduate or masters, at the end of your degree study, you submit your thesis or project in hard and soft copies. Soft copies are requested on specified DVD or CD so as to enable to university check for any plagiarism.

Again, like every good idea that has sprang up in that country, the humans beings there always frustrate them! Nigerians are desperately wicked people and you sometimes wonder what manner of a people they are.

A for books being sold by lecturers or students being forced to buy books authored by a given lecturer, I would blame the Minster of Education. Use several as example by ensuring that they are duly prosecuted, sent to jail with minimum 5 years with hard labour, and the students refunded accordingly, the trend would reduce drastically! As usual, nothing is being done or said by the 'head wrapping' Prof who has presided over the Education sector that keep recording abysmal failures year on year!

Lets see how effective it will be. My cousin will be writing her project by september. I guess those softwares should be in use by then. But wait o, wont the memory required be in hundreds of gigs?
will one laptop alone be enough for a subject like say economics or chemistry?

^^

It's entirely an internet software, which means it depends on a 'cloud'-based system. It has nothing to do with your laptop's memory. You'd simply upload your document, wait some minutes, and see the results for plagiarism count.

Omo_Tier1:
A for books being sold by lecturers or students being forced to buy books authored by a given lecturer, I would blame the Minster of Education. Use several as example by ensuring that they are duly prosecuted, sent to jail with minimum 5 years with hard labour, and the students refunded accordingly, the trend would reduce drastically! As usual, nothing is being done or said by the 'head wrapping' Prof who has presided over the Education sector that keep recording abysmal failures year on year!

Lecturers compelling students to buy their texts only happens in some schools, the practice is non existent in some schools moreover I believe it's an internal problem that should be handled internally by the schools involved. The selling of handouts and legouts was curbed without the intervention of the education ministry and I believe same can happen with textbooks. The respective schools Senate just have to draw a line between whats acceptable and what's not like it already is in some schools datsall!

pro01: ^^

It's entirely an internet software, which means it depends on a 'cloud'-based system. It has nothing to do with your laptop's memory. You'd simply upload your document, wait some minutes, and see the results for plagiarism count.

tanx 4 d clarification