By Obinna Uballa
The Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) have sealed a long-awaited agreement aimed at ending recurring strikes and stabilising Nigeria’s public university system, with lecturers set to enjoy a 40 per cent salary increase and professors receiving a new monthly allowance exceeding N140,000.
The 2025 agreement, unveiled in Abuja on Wednesday, resolves a 16-year impasse over the renegotiation of the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement and marks the most significant overhaul of academic staff welfare in over a decade.
Under the new deal, the remuneration of academic staff in federal universities will rise by 40 per cent with effect from January 1, 2026. The new salary structure will comprise the Consolidated University Academic Staff Salary and a Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance, created to support teaching, research, publications, conferences, internet access and professional development.
For the first time, the Federal Government also approved a Professorial Cadre Allowance for senior academics. Full professors will earn N1.74 million annually, translating to more than N140,000 monthly, while readers will receive N840,000 per year.
Speaking at the unveiling, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, described the agreement as a decisive step towards ending disruptions in the university system and restoring dignity to the academic profession.
“This is a historic resolution of a long-standing challenge that has undermined stability in our universities,” Alausa said, noting that President Bola Tinubu personally ensured that funding was secured before approving the deal.
Earlier on Channels Television’s Politics Today, the minister said implementation had already commenced, revealing that the necessary circulars backing the welfare components were issued in December following extensive consultations between the President and the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission.
“A professor will now receive a monthly top-up of over N140,000 through the new professorial cadre allowance,” Alausa said. “We also have the funding to support the 40 per cent salary increase and the nine enhanced Earned Academic Allowances.”
The agreement restructures nine earned academic allowances to improve transparency and fairness by linking payments strictly to clearly defined academic duties, including postgraduate supervision, clinical responsibilities, fieldwork, examinations and leadership roles.
The renegotiation process began in 2017 but failed to yield results under previous administrations, despite several committees chaired by Wale Babalakin, Munzali Jibrin and Nimi Briggs. The breakthrough came after the current administration inaugurated a new committee led by Yayale Ahmed in October 2024, culminating in the agreement 14 months later.
ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, welcomed the deal but warned that it does not by itself resolve the deep-rooted structural problems confronting Nigeria’s university system.
He attributed the prolonged delay to what he described as the government’s lack of sincerity in past negotiations, adding that several critical issues remain unresolved.
While acknowledging improvements in staff welfare, Piwuna raised concerns about persistent government interference in university autonomy, weak accountability mechanisms, inadequate research funding and declining academic standards.
He said governing councils are often arbitrarily dissolved, while vice-chancellor appointment processes are sometimes manipulated to favour political interests, undermining meritocracy and institutional stability.
The union also expressed concern over the erosion of academic standards in newly created federal universities converted from colleges of education, accusing some institutions of promoting chief lecturers to professorship without due process or established criteria.
On funding, ASUU reiterated its call for sustained investment in research and development, urging the National Assembly to pass the National Research Council Bill, which proposes allocating at least one per cent of GDP to research, innovation and development.
Beyond the university system, ASUU linked the long-term success of the agreement to Nigeria’s broader economic realities, citing rising living costs, insecurity, naira depreciation and declining real wages.
Despite its reservations, the union said it remained cautiously optimistic that the Federal Government would faithfully implement the agreement without resorting to industrial action.
ASUU expressed hope that the 2025 deal would mark the beginning of a new era of stability, predictable academic calendars and renewed confidence in Nigeria’s public universities.
