The Federal Government of Nigeria has imposed a seven-year moratorium on the establishment of new federal universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education. This significant policy shift was announced following a Federal Executive Council meeting, where the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, presented a memo highlighting the severe inefficiencies within the nation’s tertiary education system.
The decision is driven by the government's concern over the unchecked proliferation of under-utilized institutions. Minister Alausa stated that the problem is no longer access to tertiary education but rather the poor quality and inefficient use of resources caused by an oversupply of institutions. He cited alarming statistics to support this claim, revealing that several federal universities operate far below capacity, with some having fewer than 2,000 students. In one particularly egregious example, a northern university was found to have 1,200 staff members serving fewer than 800 students, a clear indication of resource wastage.
The minister also pointed to a significant lack of student interest in many of the existing institutions. Last year alone, 199 universities received fewer than 100 applications through the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), with 34 having no applicants at all. A similar trend was observed in polytechnics and colleges of education, where many had fewer than 99 applicants and 64 colleges of education recorded zero applications.
According to the government, this moratorium will serve as a "reset button" for Nigeria's tertiary education system, shifting the focus from quantity to quality. The goal is to channel resources into upgrading facilities, recruiting qualified staff, and expanding the carrying capacity of existing institutions. This is seen as a pragmatic step to improve the standard of education, prevent the production of poorly trained graduates, and sustain the international respect for Nigerian degrees.
Despite the freeze on federal institutions, the Federal Executive Council did approve nine new private universities. Minister Alausa clarified that these were not new applications but long-pending proposals that had already undergone a rigorous evaluation process by the National Universities Commission (NUC) and were found to meet the required criteria. The government's decision, therefore, does not impact private sector investment that has already met regulatory requirements, but it firmly halts the creation of new public institutions for the next seven years.
