FG bans establishment of new tertiary institutions for six years

Nigeria’s federal government has placed a six-year moratorium on the establishment of new universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, as part of efforts to improve the quality and financial sustainability of existing institutions.

Education Minister Tunji Alausa announced the decision after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja, which was chaired by President Bola Tinubu. “We have lots of tertiary institutions, both public and private. We need to help these private institutions be sustainable financially,” he said.

The scale of Nigeria’s access problem in higher education is stark. Over 2.3 million candidates applied for university admission last year through the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, yet fewer than 228,000 secured places in public universities. The moratorium comes despite the National Universities Commission approving 33 new universities in 2025 alone, bringing the national total to 309.

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FEC also moved to tackle what Alausa described as a literacy crisis, restoring the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-formal Education (NMEC) to full independent status. The commission, which had previously operated under reduced authority, was handed a mandate to educate more than 50 million young adults and equip them with digital skills over the next two to three years.

“Today, we have about 56 million Nigerians that are illiterate. We can’t continue to have a high number of citizens that are illiterate,” Alausa said. The commission will expand its reach through radio, television, public advocacy and community learning centres, with a particular focus on rural areas.

Wednesday’s council meeting approved two further education measures: amendments to the National Postgraduate Medical College Act, recognising medical fellowships as equivalent to a PhD for academic career progression, and comprehensive insurance coverage for the 180 federal unity schools across the country.