WHEN LICENCES OUTPACE LEARNING: HOW POLITICS AND POOR PLANNING ARE FAILING NIGERIA’S UNIVERSITIES

 WHEN LICENCES OUTPACE LEARNING: HOW POLITICS AND POOR PLANNING ARE FAILING NIGERIA’S UNIVERSITIES

By Tijjani Sarki, Good Governance Advocate and Public Policy Analyst

11th November, 2025

INTRODUCTION

Something is profoundly broken in Nigeria’s higher education story. Every few months, the headlines glow with announcements of new universities and polytechnics  fresh approvals from the National Universities Commission (NUC), bills passed by the National Assembly, promises of access and opportunity.

Yet, behind the press statements and ceremonial groundbreakings lies a quieter, more painful truth, many of these institutions barely have students. While millions of young Nigerians chase limited admission slots each year, dozens of licensed campuses are running on empty admitting fewer than 1,000 students each.

This is not just inefficiency. It is a costly illusion that mistakes proliferation for progress.

THE NUC AND NATIONAL ASSEMBLY: EXPANDING WITHOUT DIRECTION

At the centre of this expansion frenzy are two key actors  the National Universities Commission (NUC), which licenses and regulates universities, and the National Assembly, whose members often sponsor bills to create new ones in their constituencies.

But somewhere along the line, the noble intent of expanding access has been hijacked by politics. Every senator and representative now wants a “Federal University” or “Federal Polytechnic” named after their district not necessarily because the community needs it, but because it makes for good political optics.

The result is a landscape filled with half-born institutions  underfunded, under-enrolled, and underperforming. Lawmakers must stop treating university bills as development trophies. True progress is not about having a university in every town, it’s about having universities that truly teach, innovate, and transform lives. There are far more urgent federal projects  hospitals, research centres, innovation hubs that can drive real community growth.

THE DATA THAT TELLS THE TRUTH

Recent data from the NUC paints a sobering picture. Although Nigeria produces more than two million admission seekers yearly, our universities collectively admit just around 700,000.

Worse still, several existing institutions both old and newly licensed are barely functioning. Reports  reveal that over 20 federal tertiary institutions admitted fewer than 1,000 students in the 2024/2025 academic session.

Among them are Federal University of Agriculture, Mubi, which managed just 184 students; Federal Polytechnic, Ohodo, with only 65; Federal Polytechnic, Kabo, enrolling about 713; and Federal Polytechnic, Ukana, with 455. Others such as Federal College of Education, Iwo and Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo admitted under 600 students each. Even institutions with “technology” in their names, like Federal University of Technology, Ikot Abasi, barely reached 900.

These numbers are not statistics  they are alarm bells. They expose a system creating institutions faster than it can fill them, with resources spread too thin to ensure quality.

PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES ARE NOT IMMUNE

The crisis is not limited to government schools. The Punch Newspaper (March 15, 2025) quoted the Minister of Education acknowledging that “some private universities lack substantial admission capacity, with many boasting of no more than 1,000 students.” 

Despite this, the NUC recommended and the Federal Government approved 11 new private universities in April 2025 (NAN, 2025). It’s a move that leaves many wondering, Why keep licensing new ones when existing ones can’t even fill their classrooms?

THE WAY FORWARD: POLICY WITH PURPOSE

If Nigeria must rescue its higher education system, we must begin by replacing politics with purpose. The following actions are both urgent and achievable:

1. Set Clear Enrolment Benchmarks: Any university or polytechnic that fails to attract at least 1,500 students within three years of licensing should face a status review.

2. Tie Licensing to Performance: Renewals should depend on measurable outcomes  student enrolment, accreditation, graduate employability, and research activity.

3. Encourage Consolidation: Institutions with overlapping missions should merge, share resources, and become stronger instead of remaining small and weak.

4. Promote Transparency: Annual performance and enrolment data should be published publicly. Nigerians deserve to know which institutions are thriving and which are failing.

5. Empower Institutional Management: School authorities must take responsibility modernise curricula, improve facilities, engage communities, and strengthen partnerships to attract students.

JAMB AND THE CAPS REFORM WE NEED

Admission inequality also fuels the imbalance. While some universities reject thousands of qualified candidates, others are desperate for students.

To correct this, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) should allow students to select two universities of their choice with automatic CAPS switching. When a candidate’s first choice fails to offer admission within a specified time, the system should automatically transfer the candidate to their second-choice institution that still has space.

This reform would not only reduce the annual admission bottleneck but also help distribute students more evenly across institutions giving life to campuses now struggling for relevance and saving students from losing another year to bureaucratic delay.

THE MORAL COST OF EDUCATIONAL POLITICS

Behind every unfilled classroom is a young Nigerian whose dreams are on hold.

Behind every hollow licence is a community that expected development but received a signpost instead of a system.

When universities become political ornaments rather than centres of learning, the very soul of education is lost. Development must be measured not by how many universities are approved, but by how many graduates are empowered to build the nation.

CONCLUSION: FROM LICENCE TO LEARNING

Nigeria must move from the politics of quantity to the policy of quality.

The NUC should regulate with courage, not convenience.

The National Assembly should legislate with sincerity, not symbolism.

If lawmakers truly care about their constituencies, let them build industries, innovation parks, and vocational hubs not empty campuses that graduate no one.

Education is too sacred to be sacrificed on the altar of politics. The time has come to align our ambition with reality  to ensure that every institution licensed to teach truly has someone to teach, something to teach, and the capacity to teach it well.

Only then can we say our universities are not just licensed  but alive.

Tijjani Sarki

Good Governance Advocate and Public Policy Analyst

Executive Director 

Responsive Citizens Initiative

Responsivecitizensinitiative@gmail.com