The Federal Government has declared the era of strikes in Nigerian tertiary institutions permanently over, assuring parents, students, and the general public that universities and polytechnics will remain open for all academic sessions.
Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, gave the assurance while speaking during the presentation of awards to winners of the Student Venture Capital Grant initiative at the United Nations Development Programme Innovation Hub, Ikoyi, Lagos.
He said the government had resolved longstanding disputes with the Academic Staff Union of Universities under the FG/ASUU 2025 agreement and was close to finalising an agreement with the Non-Academic Staff Union.
On January 14, 2026, the Federal Government and ASUU signed an agreement that includes a 40 per cent salary increase for academic staff, improved pensions, and a commitment to better university funding.
Alausa described recent reports that the ASUU President, Prof Chris Piwuna, gave a four-day ultimatum to the FG as “fake news,” adding that he confirmed with the ASUU president that he was “quoted out of context.”
He added, “We’ve solved this in totality. So when you get news about looming strikes, treat it as fake. Let me use this medium to assure our parents. Our words are our bond. Your students will remain in school. Strikes have been cured in eternity.
“Our tertiary institutions will continue to remain open for all academic sessions. Please don’t worry about strikes. We’ve also resolved issues with the non-academic staff union, and that agreement will be signed in the coming weeks.”
Alausa said, “The academic staff are happy. This is an agreement that went into a quagmire for 20 years, and we have fixed it in totality. This is one government that believes in our youth. They are the heartbeat of this nation, and we have to keep them engaged in school. In the past three years, there has never been a strike, and I can tell you, there will never be a strike.”
On the status of salary payments, the minister revealed that the 40 per cent salary increase had begun reaching academic staff by the end of January 2026.
“Even without the passage of the 2026 budget, almost 90 to 95 per cent of our tertiary institutions, starting with universities, have started paying the increase without any problem.
This was possible by reallocating some funds from the 2025 budget, with legislators promising to prioritise the 2026 appropriation bill immediately,” he said.
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Addressing concerns about specific institutions, Alausa said calls to vice chancellors, including the University of Lagos, confirmed that there were no strikes.
The minister said reports of industrial action in UNILAG were due to miscommunication at local union levels and that the national ASUU president had clarified the matter.
On NASU, Alausa said the government had met with leadership and would finalise their agreement in the coming weeks. “Please be patient with us. We have drafted that agreement, and it will be signed soon. Our commitment is to ensure all staff in tertiary institutions benefit and that students’ education continues uninterrupted,” he said.
The minister said the President, Bola Tinubu, had been personally involved in resolving and averting industrial disputes concerning tertiary institutions’ staff.
“Whenever he makes a promise, he thinks about how to bring it to fruition. When we came, the President said we have to stop the ASUU strikes, whatever it takes. We sat with Professor Yayale Ahmed and the Minister of State for Education and received clear directives from the President on what needed to be done,” Alausa explained.
He explained that the negotiations with ASUU were direct and unmediated, with the government reporting only to the President.
“Whatever the academic and non-academic unions asked for, the President approved immediately. Anything to improve welfare, he said, ‘I will do it,’ and we have delivered successfully,” the minister said
