The Federal Government has approved the establishment of nine new private universities across Nigeria as part of ongoing efforts to expand access to tertiary education.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, made the announcement on Wednesday while briefing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to the minister, the newly approved institutions are:
- Tazkiyah University, Kaduna State
- Leadership University, Abuja
- Jimoh Babalola University, Kwara State
- Bridget University, Mbaise, Imo State
- Greenland University, Jigawa State
- JEFAP University, Niger State
- Azione Verde University, Imo State
- Unique Open University, Lagos State
- American Open University, Ogun State
Dr. Alausa revealed that the Tinubu administration inherited 551 pending applications for the establishment of tertiary institutions, many of which failed to meet the revised regulatory standards introduced under the new reforms.
He explained that, following a rigorous vetting process and the application of stricter National Universities Commission (NUC) guidelines, the list was narrowed down to 79 active applications, with nine granted approval at Wednesday’s FEC meeting.
“Some of these institutions have been waiting for over six years, with their promoters having already built infrastructure and invested billions of naira,” Alausa said. “Due to inefficiencies within the NUC, approvals were unnecessarily delayed. We have now introduced reforms to streamline the process.”
As part of broader regulatory reforms, the minister also announced a temporary moratorium on new applications for private universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education, except for those that meet newly established operational standards.
He emphasized that the moratorium is aimed at ensuring quality assurance and sustainability across Nigeria’s tertiary education landscape.
