Education

NUC Reviews Upward Application Fees For Establishment Of Private Varsities

Published

10 months ago

February 11, 2025

Mariam Sanni

The National Universities Commission (NUC) has reviewed upward application fees for the establishment of private universities in the country.

The Commission made this known in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by its Executive Secretary, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu.

Ribadu said the fee for purchase of application forms for the establishment of a private university is now reviewed from N1,000,000.00 to N5,000,000.00.

Also, he said the processing fee for application for the establishment of a private university is reviewed fromvN5,000,000.00 to N25,000,000.00

Ribadu said this decision was necessary to ensure that newly established private universities were positioned to meet the challenges of the 21 Century.

He added that it was also aimed at repositioning Private Universities to better meet the needs of the citizenry and for better co-ordination of the development of the Private University Education sub-sector of the Nigerian University System (NUS).

“Pursuant to the above and in line with the directive of the Honourable Minister of Education, the NUC hereby informs Promoters of proposed Private Universities in particular and the general public as follows:

“The Commission hereby suspends further processing of all inactive applications including those of private open universities.

” That is those that have not made progress on their applications or made submissions to the Commission for upwards of two years.

“And also those applications at the stage of submission of Letters of Intent only.

“The NUC will convey the reviewed processing fee of 25,000,000.00 to applicants that have purchased application forms only.

“They are also expected to effect payments within a period of thirty (30) working days or risk forfeiture of their pending applications,” he added.

The executive secretary added that the Commission had imposed a Moratorium for a period of one year with effect from Monday, Feb. 10, 2025 on inactive applications for the establishment of new private universities.

He explained that this was to enable the Commission to conduct a comprehensive review of such pending applications with a view to determining their viability.

Accordingly, he said a Moratorium had also been imposed on applications on Step 1 of the 14-Step Procedure (i.e. those that have submitted Letters of Intent only.

He added that this also included
acceptance of fresh applications for the establishment of private universities, including private open universities.

He said the Commission is in the process of reviewing other aspects of the guidelines for the establishment of private universities to ensure that the proposed Universities, when licensed, are positioned to meet the challenges of the 21 Century.

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Education

Athena Centre Appointed to NGREN Board as Federal Government Deepens Data-Driven Governance

Published

1 day ago

November 29, 2025

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Athena Centre for Policy and Leadership has been appointed to the Governing Board of the Nigerian Research and Education Network (NgREN)/Tertiary Education Research Applications and Services (TERAS). NgREN -Nigeria’s national research and education backbone – provides high-speed connectivity, shared digital services, and collaboration infrastructure for universities and research institutions, while TERAS powers the digital applications that support research, data exchange, and digital learning across the tertiary system.

In a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja by the center’s Media and Communications Officer Paul Liam.

The new NgREN/TERAS Board was inaugurated by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, at the Nigeria National EdTech Strategy Mid-Term Co-Creation Workshop, hosted with support from Mastercard Foundation and the World Bank Group.

The Board includes the Executive Secretaries of NUC, NBTE, NCCE, and TETFund; representatives of vice chancellors, rectors, and provosts; and major digital infrastructure stakeholders such as NCC, Galaxy Backbone, and USPF. The Athena Centre joins the Board as the civil society voice.

In his remarks, Dr. Alausa acknowledged the Centre’s role in shaping national transparency reforms, noting that the Ministry’s Federal Tertiary Institutions Governance Transparency Portal (FTIGTP) drew inspiration from Athena’s research and advocacy.

He expressed confidence that the reconstituted Board will deliver measurable improvements within two years to strengthen Nigeria’s research ecosystem and digital readiness.

Representing the Centre on the Board, its Chancellor, Chief Osita Chidoka, OFR, commended the Ministry’s commitment to transparency and evidence-based reform.Reaffirming the Ministry’s digital direction, Dr. Alausa stated: “For the first time, Nigeria is building a unified data architecture for basic, secondary, and tertiary institutions. You cannot reform what you cannot measure, and we are determined to measure what matters.”

Echoing the need for interoperability, Dr. Tijani emphasised the importance of shared digital infrastructure, noting:“Digital transformation fails when systems operate in silos. Our priority is a national architecture where platforms talk to each other and every school is connected.”

Chidoka welcomed the digital innovation underway but stressed the importance of deeper inclusion of state governments, who own and manage most Nigerian schools, in planning, implementation, and financing.

According to him:“For education to succeed, states must invest, lead, and commit. The Federal Government must coordinate and support, but it cannot carry the burden of school management alone.”

The Athena Centre reaffirmed its commitment to supporting federal and state governments in strengthening education data systems, digital governance, and transparent accountability.Media Contact:

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