The House of Representatives Committee on University Education has complained over the continuous and mass exit of academic and non-teaching staff from Nigeria’s universities.
This was made known on Thursday by the Chairman of the Committee, Abubakar Fulata, citing the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where authorities of the institution stated that 3,000 teaching and non-teaching staff have exited the system since 2019 either through retirement or death, but no replacements have filled in the vacancies.
He said, “It is abnormal and dangerous for the university system to continue losing lecturers and non-academic staff through retirement or other causes without making provisions for replacements.
“It is equally unhealthy for the system to have about 3,000 people leave and be granted approval to recruit only 500. This imbalance undermines academic continuity and institutional capacity.”
He urged key stakeholders such as the Ministry of Education, university governing councils, and relevant agencies to urgently fill in the manpower gap, adding that such vacancies further weaken the quality of education in Nigeria.
Fulata also encouraged universities to comply with the federal character principles for recruitment and appointments, adding that several institutions fail to display national diversity regarding recruitment of staff.