Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), has raised an alert, claiming that most Nigerian universities are on the edge of closure due to exorbitant administrative costs.

He chastised the Federal Government for continually questioning the deployment of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from public universities, claiming that such amounts are insufficient in comparison to the enormous costs incurred for electricity supply, security, and accommodation, among other administrative expenses.

Prof. Osodeke made the troubling remarks on Thursday in Abuja while answering reporters’ queries at the ASUU State of the Nation Conference, with the topic “Nigeria in a State of General Crisis: The Search for a New Path to Development”.

He claimed that most public institutions receive only N15 million per month in government overhead but must pay electrical bills of N300 million or more.

Lamenting the deplorable circumstances of some academics in the country, the ASUU President stated that farming has become even more attractive for academicians, especially when a professor is forced to earn less than N300,000 per month while also supporting his family and publishing journals.

Osodeke also criticized the country’s proliferation of universities, warning that they were only staffed with skeletons because the majority of the lecturing staff had left the country in pursuit of greener pastures.

He described the situation within the university system as very disturbing, stressing that most of their members are dropping dead.

His words, “We are so challenged. But let me give you a quick example, University of Lagos, University of Ibadan Amadu Bello University, and University Nigeria, Nsuka, what they get from the government account for overhead running of the university in a month is N15million. Meanwhile, the University of Lagos needs about N200 million naira to pay electricity bill. It is this IGR that you talk about that is used to pay for the electricity.

The Niger State College of Education Academic Staff Union, COEASU, Minna, has applauded the Niger State House of Assembly for passing a Bill to grant the institution a dual mandate to award both National Certificate in Education, NCE, and Bachelor’s Degree in Education, B. Ed.

In a statement issued by COEASU’s chairman, Dr. Ibrahim Hassan Mohammed, He described the passage of the bill as a significant milestone achievement by the institution.

According to Mohammed, “College of Education, Minna, will now join the league of other colleges of educations in the country that have been granted similar status.”

While passing the bill, the state House of Assembly  said federal colleges of education in the country are undergoing transformation that will enable them to operate a dual mandate of running National Certificate in Education (NCE) and Bachelors Degree in Education (B.Ed) and therefore there is the need to domesticate the law in the state.

This followed the presentation of a report by the House Committee on Education, Science and Technology, by its chairman, Muhammad Sani Idris.

The chairman informed the House that in carrying out its assignment, the committee invited principal stakeholders, including those in the education sector in the state, to obtain their input before arriving at its recommendations.

The chairman pointed out that the integration of the dual mandate which is meant to address the challenges facing teachers education in the country is apt especially now that education is among the core priorities of the present administration.

Mohammed argued that the upgrading of the Federal Colleges of Education to award degrees would no doubt help to bridge the gap in the demand for university education and would also reduce the level of illiteracy and enhance quality of education.

He told the house that Niger State College of Education is already running degree programmes in affiliation with universities like Ahmadu Bello University, ABU, Zaria and Usman Danfodio University, UDU, Sokoto, which shows that it already has the capacity to run degrees on its own.

Darrin Vardon, Director of Operations for the Middle East, Africa, European Union, and Commonwealth of Independent States at the International Development Program, has announced that Nigerians who take the International English Language Testing System on a computer will now receive their results in as little as two days.

Vardon emphasized in a recent statement that the rapid delivery of results is intended to help test takers who are frequently under pressure due to tight deadlines for foreign study, work, or migration applications.

“The quicker turnaround time for results underscores IELTS’ commitment to helping candidates achieve their global aspirations,” Vardon said.

He added, “We understand that an IELTS result is crucial for our test takers, whether they are seeking university admission, a visa, a new job, or a fresh start abroad. That’s why we are working diligently to process answers, maintain integrity checks, and deliver accurate results faster, opening doors to new opportunities.”

Despite the faster transmission of results, Vardon ensured that the assessment’s quality remained constant.

“We have innovated our processes, but our focus is still on human interaction—real conversations with real experts. Our highly trained assessors conduct evaluations in person, ensuring fair and accurate judgments of each candidate’s English language skills,” he stated.

In addition to Vardon’s words, Abiola Akinyemi, IELTS Operations and Business Development Manager, stated that IELTS scores are widely recognized.

“With over 12,500 endorsements from universities, governments, and employers worldwide, an IELTS result gives our test takers a competitive edge,” Akinyemi said.