The Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) was established in 1961 when a general meeting of top managers
in Commerce, Industry and Government was convened to discuss the formation of a management Institute in
Nigeria.
Subsequently, the Nigerian Management Group was formed. The Group was immediately
accorded recognition by
many international institutions like the British Institute of Management, American Management Association
etc.
In January, 1964, the Nigerian Managent Group changed its name to Nigerian Institute of
Management and was duly incorporated under the Nigerian Companies Act , Cap. 37 as a non-profit making
company,limited by Guarantee and not having a share capital.
THE NIM CHARTER AND THE PROFESSIONAL MANAGER
The Nigerian Institute of Management Establishment Act 2003 was enacted as an Act of National Assembly on the 19th
of June 2003 establishing the Nigerian Institute of Management as a body corporate under that name and charged pursuant
to section 1 (1) (a)-(d) with the general duty of:
- Determining what standards of knowledge and skill are to be attained by persons seeking to become members of the
management profession and raising those standards and skill from time to time as circumstances may permit.
- Securing in accordance with the provisions of this Act the establishment and maintenance of register of members
and publication from time to time of list of those members.
- Regulating and controlling the profession of management in all its aspects and ramifications and
- Performing through the Council under this Act the functions conferred on it by this Act.
AMBIT OF NIM’S REGULATORY POWER
The regulatory powers of the Institute is truly wide.
Before the enactment of the NIM Establishment Act there were other management professional bodies in existence,
which were empowered by the statue establishing them to regulate and control their field and branch of management
profession in all its aspects and ramifications. These Institutes were empowered to only regulate and control their
respective bodies bearing also the appellation of management in their names. This is deliberate, as the National
Assembly did not want to empower one management body over the other.
The National Assembly however took a different position with the enactment of the NIM Act.
It empowered the Institute to regulate and control the whole profession of management (including all these other
management bodies charter earlier) in all its aspects and ramifications and to determine the standard of knowledge
and qualification to be possessed by anybody who seeks to become member of any field of the management profession
in Nigeria.
This is the first in Nigeria time a Management Institute has been so empowered to regulate other
Management Institute that even received their charter before NIM. I also understand that since the enactment of
the NIM Act, National Assembly has refused to charter any other Institute bearing the name Management as a mark of
deference to NIM.
In view of the new charter status, the Institute is opening windows of opportunities to individuals seeking
professional qualifications and those desirous of upgrading their skills and knowledge for advancement and
promotion in the public and private sectors by acquiring professional qualifications in management.
Presently the Institute offers the following programmes:
1. Professional Diploma in Management (PDM). (Duration is two years).
2. Post-Graduate Diploma in Management: In collaboration with OAU, Ile-Ife (Duration is 12 months)
3. Masters in Business Administration (To commence soon)
The following are the objectives of the courses:
(a) To help practising managers or those aspiring to become managers to participate in a correspondence-type-on-the-job
course comprising various functional areas of management so that they can become decision makers in their chosen fields,
develop as general managers, and act as agents of change.
(b) To improve managerial effectiveness in organisations and to contribute substantially to the career development of
individuals.
(c) To facilitate better utilisation of management graduates in commerce, industry and government.
(d) To help in speeding up the process of professionalism in Management.
