Nigeria Has Only 100,000 Lecturers For 2.1 Million Varsity Students – NUC

Due to a scarcity of lecturers, the National Universities Commission (NUC) has recommended that universities be excluded from the Federal Government’s circular on new employment.

According to the commission, Nigerian universities have 100,000 academic staff members serving 2.1 million students.

This was revealed in the NUC’s most recent report, which was made available to newsmen.

Mr Chris Maiyaki, the NUC’s Deputy Executive Secretary for Administration, was reported in the bulletin as saying that the commission oversees nearly 200 universities, with 48 belonging to the federal government, 54 states, and 99 private institutions.

He said,
“The entire system has about 2.1 million students and staff strength of about 170,000 non-teaching and 100,000 academic staff.

“Some of the problems facing the system include increased running cost, meagre budgetary allocations, issue of power shortages and shortages of manpower.

“There is a need for universities to be isolated from the Federal Government’s circular on embargo on new employment because of the peculiarity and distinctive nature of the universities in order for them to keep up the pace in attaining comparable standards with their counterparts globally.

“We also have incessant interference in the NUC’s functions by some professional bodies and associations, which have continued to issue needless instructions to universities.

“Other challenges in the Nigerian university system include the issue of digital response to COVID-19 lockdown.”