FG Suspends Establishment Of New Tertiary Institutions For 7 Years

The Federal Government has announced a seven-year moratorium on establishing new federal universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education, citing under-utilisation, overstretched resources, and declining academic quality.

The decision, approved at Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu, followed a presentation by the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Olatunji Alausa.

Speaking to State House correspondents after the meeting, Alausa said the main challenge facing Nigeria’s tertiary education sector was no longer access but inefficient duplication, inadequate infrastructure, poor staffing, and dwindling enrolment.

“Several federal universities operate far below capacity, with some having fewer than 2,000 students. In one northern university, there are 1,200 staff serving fewer than 800 students. This is a waste of government resources,” he said.

According to him, 199 universities received fewer than 100 applications through JAMB last year, with 34 recording none. Of the 295 polytechnics nationwide, many attracted fewer than 99 applicants, while 64 of 219 colleges of education recorded zero applications.

Alausa warned that the unchecked proliferation of poorly subscribed institutions risked producing ill-prepared graduates, damaging the global reputation of Nigerian degrees, and worsening unemployment.

He explained that the moratorium would allow the government to focus on upgrading facilities, recruiting qualified staff, and expanding the capacity of existing institutions.

“If we want to improve quality and not be a laughing stock globally, the pragmatic step is to pause the establishment of new federal institutions,” he said.

Nigeria currently has 72 federal universities, 42 federal polytechnics, and 28 federal colleges of education, alongside hundreds of state and private tertiary institutions.

Despite the freeze, the minister confirmed that FEC had approved nine new universities at the meeting, clarifying that these were private institutions whose licences had already met regulatory requirements.