Nigerian Universities on the Rise Again: Salute to the FGN and Academia II
By Prof. M.K. Othman
As humans, we are forgetful, but we must not forget the recent decline and devastating deterioration of Nigerian universities before the current political dispensation under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Repeated disruptions fractured research agendas and entrenched an academic culture in which prolonged strikes were expected rather than exceptional. A four- or five-year programme often stretched to six or eight years, with staff and students as the primary victims and the nation as the ultimate loser. The 2009 FGN-ASUU imbroglio has a long history, culminating in 13 months of cumulative industrial action between 2010 and 2025, and 21 months between 2015 and 2023 alone – amounting to a loss of two years and ten months of academic activity on university campuses.
The costs and consequences of the FGN-ASUU crisis were devastating and indescribable. They contributed to the deaths of several university lecturers during and after the 2022 industrial action. Dr. Ayo Ojediran of the Faculty of Education at Obafemi Awolowo University slumped and died in his office; the University of Calabar alone lost more than 15 teaching staff during the strike period, with many universities reporting similar tragedies. This was compounded by a massive brain drain – a national loss of intellectual capital.
Against this historical background, we can better appreciate the current rise of Nigerian universities and, more importantly, the growing institutional capacity it reflects. Some institutions are now making waves in global rankings. The rise has not been in a straight line, as institutions shift with changes in performance, competitors, and ranking methodologies. Rankings are imperfect, but their indicators – teaching, research environment and quality, international outlook, and industry engagement – reflect real institutional capacity. Sustainable performance therefore requires funded research, credible postgraduate training, functional laboratories and libraries, international collaboration, and reliable institutional data.
The foundations of this rise predate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who assumed office on 29 May, 2023. However, he deserves overwhelming credit for establishing the Yayale Ahmed negotiation team and for accepting and implementing its recommendations. Before the Yayale Ahmed team, Memoranda of Understanding and Memoranda of Action willingly signed by the FGN and ASUU were jettisoned, while the negotiation reports of Profs. Munzali Jibrin and Nimi Briggs on achieving a sustainable resolution to the university crisis were ignored and left unimplemented. By accepting the recommendations of the Yayale Ahmed team, President Tinubu has allowed intervention agencies to do their work: TETFund interventions, World Bank-supported African Centres of Excellence, and institutional research initiatives, while building on the accumulated work of Nigerian academics over many years.
When Times Higher Education (THE) examined Nigeria’s sharp improvement in its 2023 rankings, former World Bank tertiary education coordinator, Jamil Salmi, pointed to the research capacity built through Nigeria’s regional Centres of Excellence. The present administration therefore inherited a trajectory which it has vigorously pursued to a higher level. Its record should be judged on how it has strengthened the conditions that sustain that trajectory.
On that measure, there are developments worth acknowledging. TETFund remains perhaps the most consequential public financing mechanism for tertiary education in the country. Under the Executive Secretary, Arc. Sonny Echono, with the firm supervision and support of the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf T. Alausa, its interventions extend beyond physical infrastructure to research, academic staff development, laboratories, ICT, innovation, career and entrepreneurship development, medical education, and other institutional needs.
Government figures put TETFund funding at about N320.3 billion in 2023, N683.4 billion in 2024, and approximately N1.6 trillion in 2025. While increased allocation matters, expenditure must not be confused with outcomes; the real test is whether these funds produce functional laboratories, stronger research groups, useful patents and innovations, better libraries and digital access, internationally competitive publications, and graduates equipped for the economy they are entering. The 2027 THE results for Nigeria’s public universities further attest to the FGN’s backing through TETFund.
Furthermore, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) addresses another critical weakness: access to tertiary education by indigent students. President Tinubu formally launched NELFUND’s digital disbursement process in July 2024. By December 2025, the Government reported that N86.3 billion had been disbursed to more than 450,000 students in 218 tertiary institutions. On 8 April, 2026, Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, visited the Federal University Dutsin-Ma in Katsina State, where he announced that the Fund had disbursed over N240 billion in institutional fees and upkeep stipends to more than 1.3 million students across public tertiary institutions since the programme began in 2024. This represents an average of approximately N184,615 per beneficiary to cover educational costs.
From April to August 2026, NELFUND disbursements increased from N240 billion to N322 billion. In the last six months alone, hundreds of thousands of students have benefited, creating hope and aspiration for a better tomorrow. In an economy where household incomes have been severely squeezed, NELFUND’s intervention is potentially consequential. It does not merely alleviate financial burdens; it strengthens Nigeria’s foundation for sustainable national growth, as an educated and empowered youth population is essential for national productivity and social stability.
So far, NELFUND has worked credibly to ensure that Nigerian students are not withdrawn for inability to pay fees or meet basic survival needs, as it provides a monthly upkeep stipend of N20,000. A student who withdraws for inability to meet institutional charges is not merely an access statistic; it is a loss of human capital to the nation.
As someone who has been part of the university system since the early 1980s – first as a student, then as a young researcher, and now with over three decades of service – I have witnessed the ebb and flow of educational policies and their impact on the lives of students and staff. I recall that during the economically difficult 1990s, many students at public universities faced escalating costs despite government subsidies. As subsidies declined and living costs rose, the strain worsened. Many students worked part-time, tutored privately, or started small businesses to supplement their income. While these efforts demonstrated tenacity, they often came at the expense of academic development, resulting in longer graduation timelines, lower performance, or even dropping out with unrealised dreams.
Today, I can confidently say that NELFUND has made a real difference in pulling students back from that hopeless trajectory. This sentiment resonates with many students and administrators in our academic community. They see the positive shifts NELFUND is creating – birthing a new era and renewed hope for access to higher education.
In today’s economy, where many household incomes are severely squeezed, NELFUND’s intervention is having a consequential positive impact on families, as many parents no longer worry excessively about providing financial support for their children in public tertiary institutions. Access and quality thus reinforce each other, helping the university system achieve its current global ranking and creating hope for quality leadership for Nigeria’s future, as today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders.
NELFUND’s milestone reflects the programme’s potential and the tangible changes it has brought to tertiary education in Nigeria. Thanks to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s initiative, which has renewed hope for access to higher education, and salute to the FGN for the strong showing of federal universities in the 2027 THE rankings, the story so far is one of progress and promise.
What role has academia played in the global ranking of our universities? To be concluded next week.
