In a scathing critique of the Federal Government’s education policy, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has condemned the recent approval of licenses for new private universities, labeling it a “scandalous proliferation” that threatens to erase Nigerian institutions from global relevance. This condemnation comes in stark contrast to the government’s own recent seven-year moratorium on new federal tertiary institutions, a move ASUU itself had long advocated for.
The union, in a statement signed by its President, Dr. Christopher Piwuna, questioned the government’s contradictory stance. It recalled the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa’s, recent declaration that “access to tertiary education was no longer an issue in the country,” a statement backed by data showing over 30 universities had zero subscriptions in the last admission cycle and many operate far below capacity.
“If we agree that access is no longer an issue, why is the NUC giving more licenses to private universities?” ASUU queried. “While ASUU acknowledges the rights of private individuals to establish universities, education must be tightly controlled to ensure quality… The government must therefore promote quality education and shun profiteering in the education sector.”
A System Stretched Thin and a Warning from the Minister
ASUU’s outrage is underscored by the current landscape: 72 federal, 108 state, and 159 private universities, bringing the total to 339. The union argues that spreading already scarce resources across this “large surface area was meaningless and wasteful,” a concern eerily echoed by the government’s own minister.
Dr. Alausa had warned the Federal Executive Council that “unchecked proliferation of poorly subscribed institutions risked producing ill-prepared graduates, eroding the value of Nigerian degrees internationally, and worsening unemployment.” He revealed shocking inefficiencies, noting one northern university where 1,200 staff serve fewer than 800 students—a scenario he termed “a waste of government resources.”
This internal government acknowledgment forms the core of ASUU’s argument. The union asserts that universities have “turned into compensation for political patronage” rather than centers of academic excellence, established in “total disregard for time-tested planning.”
An Impending Strike and a Call to Action
Beyond the issue of proliferation, ASUU reiterated its long-standing grievances with the Federal Government, which remain unresolved and are now pushing the union toward industrial action. The outstanding issues include:
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The renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.
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Sustainable funding and the revitalization of existing universities.
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Payment of outstanding 25 to 35 per cent salary arrears and promotion arrears.
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The welfare of lecturers retired under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), whom ASUU says are bearing the brunt of “anti-people policies.”
The statement concluded with a clear and sobering warning: “Lamentably, the FGN has consistently turned a deaf ear to all our pleas… it is clear that ASUU may have no other option than to embark on an action to press the FGN to listen to our demands and do the needful.”
This positions the nation’s university system on a precarious cliff-edge, facing a dual crisis of qualitative decline and the imminent threat of a system-wide shutdown, all stemming from what ASUU sees as the government’s contradictory and unsustainable policies.
