The Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Wednesday unveiled a renegotiated agreement designed to address long-standing disputes that have triggered repeated strikes and prolonged closures of public universities.
The 2025 agreement concludes a renegotiation process that began in 2017 to review the 2009 FG–ASUU pact, which was originally scheduled for revision in 2012. Previous renegotiation efforts led by committees chaired by Wale Babalakin, Munzali Jibrin and Nimi Briggs failed to produce a final deal.
Progress was achieved under the current administration following the inauguration of a Yayale Ahmed–led renegotiation committee in October 2024, culminating in an agreement about 14 months later.
The new pact focuses on improved conditions of service, enhanced funding, university autonomy, academic freedom and systemic reforms aimed at reversing sectoral decay, reducing brain drain and repositioning universities for national development.
A key highlight of the agreement is a 40 per cent upward review of academic staff salaries in federal universities, effective January 1, 2026. Under the new pay structure, remuneration will consist of the Consolidated University Academic Staff Salary and a Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance, which together account for the increase.
The tools allowance is intended to support essential academic activities such as research, journal publications, conference attendance, internet access, professional memberships, and book purchases, to improve productivity and retain talent within the system.
The agreement also restructures nine earned academic allowances, linking payments strictly to duties performed in areas such as postgraduate supervision, fieldwork, clinical duties, examinations, and leadership responsibilities, in a bid to enhance transparency and fairness.
In a major first, the Federal Government approved a Professorial Cadre Allowance for senior academics. Under the scheme, full professors will earn N1.74m annually, while readers will receive N840,000 per year, a move described as a structural and transformative intervention to recognise experience and strengthen the academic profession.
Speaking at the unveiling in Abuja, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, described the agreement as a renewed commitment by President Bola Tinubu’s administration to stable academic calendars and improved welfare for lecturers.
According to Alausa, the deal represents “renewed trust, restored confidence, and a decisive turning point in the history of Nigeria’s tertiary education system.” He credited President Tinubu with personally driving the process, noting that it marked the first time a sitting president had taken full ownership of the issue.
He said years of unresolved welfare and remuneration challenges had fuelled incessant industrial actions, but stressed that the administration opted for “dialogue over discord, reform over delay, and resolution over rhetoric.”
Describing the Professorial Cadre Allowance as “structural, practical and transformative,” Alausa said the agreement ushers in “a new era of stability, dignity and excellence” for Nigerian universities and pledged faithful implementation under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
Meanwhile, ASUU cautioned that despite the agreement, deep-rooted structural, governance and socio-economic challenges still threaten the long-term sustainability of the university system.
ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, acknowledged the government’s efforts but noted that prolonged delays in reaching the agreement stemmed from what he described as insufficient commitment by past authorities.
