The Federal Government of Nigeria and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) have formally signed a long-awaited, renegotiated agreement that ends a 16-year stalemate over the terms of academic service conditions in federal universities.
The agreement, reached on 23 December 2025 and signed in Abuja on Wednesday, takes effect from 1 January 2026 and will be reviewed after three years.
It follows protracted negotiations that began in 2017 to revisit the 2009 Federal Government–ASUU Agreement, which had been marked by repeated delays and prolonged disputes between lecturers and successive administrations.
At the heart of the new pact is a 40 percent increase in salaries for academic staff in federal universities, a long-standing demand of the union aimed at improving remuneration and addressing the brain drain.
Under the agreement:
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- Academic staff salaries will be increased by 40 per cent, effective from 1 January 2026.
- Professors will retire at age 70 and receive pension benefits equivalent to their full annual salaries.
- A new university funding model will allocate dedicated resources for research, libraries, laboratories, equipment and staff development, addressing chronic under-funding of vital academic activities.
- A National Research Council (NRC) bill will be forwarded to the National Assembly to establish a statutory body to finance university research with at least one per cent of Nigeria’s GDP.
- There will be stronger university autonomy and academic freedom, with academic leadership positions such as Deans and Provosts to be elected, exclusively open to professors.
- The agreement includes a guarantee of no victimisation of any staff involved in past struggles over renegotiation.
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Delivering remarks at the presentation of the agreement, ASUU President Prof. Chris Piwuna described the signed deal as the culmination of years of struggle and negotiation.
He emphasised the deep historical context of the renegotiation process, noting that “the 2009 agreement was due for renegotiation in 2012, which was after 3 years, but it dragged on for this long due to the poverty of sincerity in the government on the renegotiation.”
Prof. Piwuna also underscored the need to address enduring systemic issues, particularly government interference in university autonomy. He highlighted concerns that governing councils were often subordinated to political influence, with arbitrary dissolutions and non-merit appointments of vice-chancellors undermining institutional stability.
In strongly worded remarks, he said autonomy must be more than a principle written on paper, warning that “university autonomy is universally recognised as a cornerstone of a functional higher education system,” and calling on stakeholders to defend it.
He also expressed concerns about research funding, insisting that “research funding is not a luxury but a necessity for any university that seeks relevance, excellence, and societal impact,” and urged lawmakers to expedite the passage of the NRC bill.
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Moruf Alausa, who spoke at the ceremony, reiterated the government’s commitment to ending recurring disputes that have paralysed academic calendars and eroded morale. He described the agreement as a reflection of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s determination to prioritise accessible, quality and uninterrupted academic calendars.
Dr Alausa noted that the 40 per cent salary increase had been structured through a consolidated academic tools allowance, designed to support journal publications, conference participation and internet access, among other academic needs. A new professorial credit allowance was also introduced to recognise the heavier scholarly and administrative responsibilities of senior academics.
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