FG Approves 40% Pay Rise For Lecturers, Introduces New Professorial Allowance
The Federal Government has approved a 40 per cent salary increase for lecturers in federal tertiary institutions and introduced a new professorial cadre allowance that will see university professors receive a monthly top-up of over ₦140,000.
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Wednesday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, shortly after the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) signed a historic 2025 agreement.
The agreement effectively ends a 16-year stalemate over the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN–ASUU pact and is expected to usher in improved welfare, increased funding, and greater stability across Nigeria’s university system.
Speaking on the development, Alausa described the agreement as a major milestone for the tertiary education sector and a reflection of President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to delivering quality, accessible, and uninterrupted university education.
He revealed that the agreement introduces a new category of allowance known as the professorial cadre allowance, in addition to the restructuring of nine enhanced Earned Academic Allowances.
“A professor will now receive a monthly top-up of over ₦140,000, as President Tinubu has created a new category of allowance for academic staff, known as the professorial cadre allowance—an enhanced additional package,” Alausa said.
He added that the Federal Government now has the financial capacity to support both the salary increment and the newly structured allowances.
“Today, we have the funding to support the 40 per cent salary increase granted to our lecturers across all our institutions, as well as the nine enhanced Earned Academic Allowances, which are now well structured,” the minister stated.
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Alausa assured lecturers that the agreement would not merely remain on paper, stressing that implementation had already commenced before the formal signing.
“Before today, we had already started implementation. The Chairman of the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission and the President worked several hours between December 20, 29, and 30 to ensure that the circular backing the workers’ welfare component of the agreement was released. That circular has now been released,” he said.
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According to him, President Tinubu insisted on ensuring adequate funding before approving the agreement.
“When we were negotiating, the President said, ‘I will not give you the go-ahead to sign an agreement I know I will not implement.’ The key question was whether the funding was available. Once the President was fully convinced, he approved it,” Alausa explained.
He noted that lecturers now have clarity on what they are entitled to under the enhanced Earned Academic Allowances.
“The lecturers and academics now know who the Federal Government will pay, what they are paid for, and the cost,” he added.
The agreement was formally presented earlier in Abuja and marks a significant step toward restoring confidence in Nigeria’s public university system after years of industrial disputes.