The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a grave warning that a full-blown industrial action is imminent across Nigeria’s public universities. In mid-November 2025, the union’s leadership in the Ibadan Zone declared that the Federal Government has failed to address its core demands, chief among them being the conclusion of the long-stalled renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement. With the one-month ultimatum window drawing to a close, the nation faces the specter of a major disruption to the academic calendar.
At the heart of this confrontation are the intertwined issues of inadequate remuneration and university autonomy. ASUU’s primary grievance centers on the current Consolidated University Salary Scale (CONUASS), a structure that has been rendered obsolete by the country’s persistent and galloping inflation. According to Professor Biodun Olaniran, the Ibadan Zonal Coordinator, the union’s central demand is not merely the payment of arrears but the establishment of an entirely new and competitive salary structure. This need is deeply rooted in the original goals of the 2009 agreement, which sought to reverse the brain drain by offering remuneration comparable to African regional averages, restore university autonomy by disengaging academic staff from the unified civil service wage structure, and ensure sustained funding for infrastructure and research.
The union contends that while the government has recently released partial funds—such as some promotion arrears and third-party deductions—these actions are being misrepresented by government functionaries to mislead the public. ASUU insists these are routine obligations that do nothing to address the fundamental issues of a comprehensive salary review and the finalization of the agreement.
This current impasse is merely the latest chapter in a long history of unfulfilled government pledges, a cycle of industrial conflict that has destabilized the university system since 2017. The negotiation process has been passed through four different government-led committees, the most recent being the Alhaji Yayale Ahmed-led committee, which failed to produce an acceptable outcome. ASUU representatives rejected the government’s counter-offers, deeming them wholly inappropriate given the economic realities faced by lecturers. Further fueling the strike threat are other unresolved issues, including the release of approximately three and a half months of withheld salaries from the 2022 strike, the non-payment of Earned Academic Allowances, and a demonstrable lack of commitment to funding the revitalization of public universities.
ASUU maintains that the core problem is not a lack of resources but a profound lack of political will to invest in quality education. The union has made a final appeal to all stakeholders, including students and parents, to urge the government to act decisively within the remaining days of the ultimatum to avert another crippling strike that would disrupt the lives and careers of millions.
