The Federal Government has approved the establishment of nine new private universities in various parts of the country.
Minister of Education Dr Tunji Alausa announced on Wednesday, while addressing State House correspondents following the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu in Abuja.
The newly approved institutions include:
- Tazkiyah University, Kaduna State
- Leadership University, Abuja
- Jimoh Babalola University, Kwara State
- Bridget University, Mbaise, Imo State
- Greenland University, Jigawa State
- JEFAP University, Niger State
- Azione Verde University, Imo State
- Unique Open University, Lagos State
- American Open University, Ogun State
Dr. Alausa revealed that the current administration inherited 551 pending applications for new tertiary institutions, which were reviewed under stricter approval criteria. As a result, the number was narrowed down to 79 active applications, out of which nine received final clearance.
He noted that several of these newly approved universities had been awaiting accreditation for over six years, with substantial investments already made in infrastructure and academic planning.
“Delays in approvals were largely due to inefficiencies within the National Universities Commission (NUC),” the minister said. “However, we have introduced reforms to streamline the process, and today’s approvals mark a significant step in clearing that backlog.”
Dr. Alausa also disclosed that a moratorium has been placed on new applications for private universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education—except for institutions that meet the newly introduced operational standards.
