New private universities approved by the Federal Government mark a major step forward in Nigeria’s education reform under the Tinubu administration

New private universities approved by the Federal Government are set to transform Nigeria’s higher education landscape, as President Bola Tinubu’s administration clears long-standing bottlenecks in tertiary institution approvals.

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Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, made the announcement on Wednesday following the Federal Executive Council meeting held in Abuja. The approval includes nine new private universities located across the country.

The newly established 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

According to Alausa, these approvals are part of a wider effort to address inefficiencies in the National Universities Commission (NUC), which had delayed decisions on over 551 applications inherited by the current government.

Out of the 551 requests, only 79 were deemed active and viable after stricter operational standards were applied. From those, nine universities were cleared in this week’s Council meeting.

“Due to inefficiencies within the NUC, approvals were delayed. We have since introduced reforms to streamline these processes, and today’s approvals are a result of clearing this backlog,” said Dr. Alausa.

He added that many of the newly approved institutions had been awaiting accreditation for over six years, with some promoters already investing billions of naira in infrastructure and facilities.

In a bold regulatory move, the Federal Government also announced a temporary moratorium on new applications for private universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education—except for those meeting the revised operational benchmarks.

This step, the minister noted, will ensure quality control and better oversight of private institutions in the country.

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These developments reflect a powerful shift in Nigeria’s educational priorities and reaffirm the Tinubu administration’s commitment to accessible, high-quality tertiary education.

Source: Read more at thesun.ng