Aftermath of FG-ASUU 2026 signed agreement

 

“History will remember today not merely as an unveiling ceremony, but as the day Nigeria chose dialogue, transparency, fiscal realism, and strong Presidential commitment as the pathway to resolving long-standing governance challenges and achieving sustained progress.”

– Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, during the signing of the agreement between FG and ASUU on January 14, 2026.

Last week Wednesday, the Federal Government, through the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, signed a fresh agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities. The Guardian of January 17 said that in a defining move to end a 17-year crisis that has repeatedly destabilised Nigeria’s university system, the FG and the ASUU have finally signed a comprehensive agreement aimed at restoring stability, improving staff welfare, and safeguarding academic standards. The protracted conflict, marked by recurring strikes, inadequate funding, and unresolved welfare concerns, has repeatedly disrupted academic calendars, accelerated brain drain, and left millions of students at a disadvantage.

The newspaper reported that during this period, ASUU embarked on eight major strikes, lasting a combined total of about 1,200 days. The 2026 agreement, which replaces the 2009 pact, takes effect from January 1, 2026, with a three-year review cycle. It seeks to resolve long-standing issues relating to salaries, pensions, university funding and strike prevention. The 35-page document is organised into six chapters and focuses on conditions of service, funding, university autonomy, academic freedom and other critical matters.

ASUU’s face-off with the established authority, be it federal or state, has been from time immemorial. I remember that my first article in this newspaper was “Saving our universities”, published on Friday, November 3, 1995. The commentary dwelt on challenges that students face in acquiring a university education. These include overcrowded classrooms, ill-equipped laboratories, archaic libraries, insufficient or non-existent hostel accommodation and perennial ASUU strike, to mention a few. 31 years after I wrote that piece, the situation in our universities and tertiary institutions remains deplorable.   That’s why am excited that this newly signed agreement should lay to rest the ghost of perennial industrial unrest on our campuses, but will it? Before I answer that question, let’s see what’s in the agreement signed.

The aforementioned edition of The Guardian newspaper teased out 10 salient points about the FG–ASUU agreement and what it means for lecturers, students and the future of tertiary education in Nigeria: In terms of salary review, the agreement provides for an upward review of lecturers’ salaries by about 40 per cent, alongside improved conditions of service. Under the new structure, professors are entitled to an annual allowance of N1.74 million, while Readers on CONUASS 07 and 06 will receive N840,000 per year.

University academic staff are eligible for earned academic allowances. The agreement specifies nine types, including postgraduate supervision allowance; teaching practice, industrial supervision and field trip allowance; honoraria for postgraduate oral examinations; honoraria for external moderation; and external assessment allowances for Readers and Professors. The retirement age for the professorial cadre is fixed at 70 years. Retired professors in recognised public universities will now receive pensions calculated at 100 per cent of their annual salary.

Female academic staff are granted six months of maternity leave, while male academic staff are entitled to two weeks of paternity leave. As stipulated in the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, the Federal Government will continue to bear the full capital and recurrent costs of university staff primary schools, as well as the capital costs of university secondary schools.

As per other conditions of service, additional non-salary benefits include group life insurance, research leave, sabbatical leave, annual leave, sick leave and deferred leave or compensation for denial. The agreement also provides for injury pensions and the provision of office accommodation and facilities, to be managed by individual university governing councils.

In terms of the Stabilisation and Restoration Fund, the Federal Government will provide N30 billion for the stabilisation and restoration of universities.  The money will be disbursed in three equal instalments of N10bn annually from 2026 to 2028. A National Research Council Bill will be forwarded to the National Assembly. The proposed legislation will provide for funding of research, innovation and development through at least one per cent of the Gross Domestic Product.

 The agreement provides for the review and amendment of five laws considered to impede university autonomy and academic freedom. This process will be initiated by the Federal Ministry of Education in collaboration with ASUU and other stakeholders. The laws include the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board Act; National Universities Commission Act; Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions) Act; Universities Miscellaneous Provisions Act, and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund Act.

Coming to the brass tacks, I do hope the Federal Government will fully implement this renegotiated agreement.  The Nigerian government has a penchant for negotiating agreements it does not intend to implement. This is how I commended the 2009 agreement signed with ASUU, only for the FG to default in implementation. I do hope President Tinubu will not renege on this agreement.

Also, to all intents and purposes am not sure the state governors are duty-bound to implement this agreement for their state universities, nor will private universities. What this means is that state universities may be forced into another prolonged negotiation with their respective state governments.

Lecturers in private universities may also not be able to force their employers to implement this noble deal, given the fact that they are under private business ownership, which may not reckon with what obtains in the public sector.

Another issue that may further cause restiveness in our universities, despite this agreement with ASUU, is the unhealthy rivalry between the academic and non-academic staff. The Senior Staff Association of Universities and Non-Academic Staff Union may soon declare a strike to press home their own renegotiated welfare packages. I recall in my undergraduate days at the University of Lagos and postgraduate period at the University of Ibadan, non-academic staff would switch off lights and water on campuses as well as lock up libraries, laboratories and classrooms, among other things too make the academic community feel their impact when they embark on industrial action. Alausa should, therefore, enter into a preemptive negotiation with this segment of workers before they down tools.

While I laud the effort of President Tinubu and that of the Minister of Education in facilitating this new agreement, they need to similarly initiate the resolution of the FG faceoff with medical doctors and allied unions. While the Federal Government was able to halt the resumption of the strike by the National Association of Resident Doctors last week, Joint Health Sector Unions have been on strike since November 14, 2025, thereby leaving thousands of Nigerians, including critically ill patients, without access to medical care in public health facilities. This is heartrending!

Now, back to the academic staff of Nigerian universities, to whom much is given, from them much is expected. As bakers of knowledge, they need to do more in terms of service delivery. Regurgitating 20-30 years of lecture notes to students in the digital age should not be tolerated. This is the era of artificial intelligence, and lecturers as purveyors of knowledge need to update their skills to train their students better. There shouldn’t be a lecturer in tertiary institutions across Nigeria who wouldn’t be able to use a computer for their academic research. Absenteeism among lecturers should also no longer be condoned by the universities.

I.G: @jideojong