In a bold and uncompromising move aimed at restoring sanity to Nigeria’s education system, the Federal Government has declared war on the unchecked creation of unapproved satellite campuses by public tertiary institutions.
The stern warning was issued by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, in a circular dated May 30, 2025, and obtained by Giant News Network on Wednesday. In it, Alausa expressed “serious concern” over what he described as an alarming rise in the establishment of unauthorized satellite campuses by Federal Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education across the country.
“Many of these newly created satellite campuses lack the necessary academic, strategic, and infrastructural backing to justify their existence,” the minister stated firmly.
The memo, which was directed to the Executive Secretaries of the National Universities Commission (NUC), the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), and the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), pulled no punches. Dr. Alausa accused some Vice Chancellors, Rectors, and Provosts of deliberately abandoning existing institutions to pursue poorly planned and inadequately funded expansion projects.
“Rather than strengthening what we already have, limited resources are being wasted on setting up satellite campuses that serve no real academic purpose and fall far below required standards,” he lamented.
According to Alausa, this trend is not just misguided — it is dangerous. He warned that it threatens the integrity, quality, and long-term sustainability of Nigeria’s already fragile tertiary education system.
As part of the clampdown, the minister has now directed all regulatory bodies — NUC, NBTE, and NCCE — to issue formal notices to all Federal tertiary institutions under their supervision. The message? No new satellite campus should be established without prior and express approval from the Minister of Education through the appropriate agency.
“Any institution found flouting this directive will face strict disciplinary measures,” the memo concluded.
This warning comes at a time when the country’s education sector is grappling with multiple challenges — from decaying infrastructure to underfunding, staff strikes, and rising dropout rates. Critics argue that the unchecked spread of unapproved campuses is only making a bad situation worse, diluting academic quality and overburdening scarce resources.
With this directive, the Federal Government appears ready to draw a hard line — and for institutions that have long operated under the radar, the days of unchecked expansion may finally be numbered.
Regulatory agencies are expected to begin compliance checks in the coming weeks. A full list of unapproved satellite campuses may be published pending further investigation.
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