Victoria Mbangwa
In a significant policy shift, the Federal Government has placed a moratorium on the establishment of new private universities, citing the need for a more structured and quality-driven higher education sector.
This decision, announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, follows the approval of provisional licences for 11 new private universities across Nigeria.
Alausa explained that while the government remains committed to expanding access to tertiary education, the suspension will allow for a thorough review of the sector’s capacity to sustain quality education.
However, institutions that have already progressed significantly in the approval process will still be considered.
“We’ve decided to review the ones that have gone through the second visit, and if they meet all their requirements, we’ll go ahead and approve them. So there are still some more that will be coming to FEC for approval.
“They’ve invested money. We’re very mindful of those investments. We will continue to process those that meet the requirements of the National University Commission. So we want that to be clear,”Alausa stated after the 24th Federal Executive Council meeting at Aso Rock.
The newly approved universities include New City University in Ogun State, University of Fortune in Ondo State, and Isaac Balami University of Aeronautics and Management in Lagos, among others.
These institutions successfully met the 13-step accreditation process set by the National Universities Commission (NUC).
