Nigerian University Professors Finally Mention Amount They Should Be Paid Monthly
- Nigerian university professors demand a minimum monthly salary of N2.5 million, citing the rising cost of living and unsustainable current pay
- Professors lament poor remuneration compared to peers in Africa, with some earning less than N650,000 monthly, despite heavy workloads and housing challenges
- ASUU leaders warn that failure to meet the demand will worsen brain drain in Nigeria’s education sector and deepen the disparity with political office holders
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Nigerian university professors have formally declared that their monthly salaries should not fall below N2.5 million.
This they insisted that the current pay scale is no longer sustainable.
Source: Twitter
The demand comes amid protests across several campuses on Tuesday, August 26, as members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) criticised the federal government for failing to implement the renegotiated 2009 FGN–ASUU agreement.
Legit.ng gathered that at present, professors earn between N525,010 and N633,333 monthly, while graduate assistants take home between N125,000 and N138,020, as reported by Punch.
Varsity professors bemoan: ‘We are grossly underpaid’
A professor at the University of Ibadan, Remi Aiyede, argued that Nigerian lecturers were among the most poorly paid in Africa despite their workload.
He said,
“If you want to benchmark it across countries, you will see that the monthly pay of an average professor across Africa is between $2,000 and $4,000.
"So, if you break that down to naira, then you will have an idea of what we are talking about. In fact, a million naira is conservative. Professors in Nigeria should not earn less than N2.5m monthly.”
Aiyede further recalled that the government had already received recommendations supporting the N2.5m benchmark.
“After the Nimi-Briggs Commission, there was a committee set up by this government, which looked into the matter. The report was submitted to the President, and if I understand what was written in that document, a professor should be earning about N2.5m,” he added.
Professors: Cost of living makes demands realistic
At the University of Lagos, Prof. Abigail Ndizika-Ogwezzy, of the Department of Mass Communication, stressed that the rising cost of living made the N2.5m demand necessary.
“Anything less than N2.5m for a professor at the bar is not it; look at the reality. If I want to get a house to live in this Akoka area, it’s not less than N3m per year. Then won’t I feed, pay my children’s fees, ride a good car and even take care of my health? Then when is my reward?” she asked.
She also lamented that the overwhelming workload was impacting the health of many lecturers.
“We are carrying the burden of three, four, five people. It is impacting our health, our eyes. We have to read scripts, prepare notes, do community service, conduct research, publish, and attend conferences. Meanwhile, we are all buying from the same market as private sector workers, yet many lecturers cannot pay their children’s school fees,” she added.
‘Disparity with politicians indefensible’
From Babcock University, Ogun state, Prof. Sheriffdeen Tela argued that the salary disparity between professors and political office holders was unjustifiable, Vanguard reported.
He said,
“If you are saying that a professor receives not less than N1.2m in a month, that means that in a year it’s still less than what the legislature takes home in a month. Some people were advocating N2.5m monthly, and yes, even with the kind of economy that we are in now, it makes sense.”
Tela criticised the government’s preference for offering loans to lecturers instead of adequate pay.
‘Ex-ASUU president sends new warning
Source: Twitter
Former ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, said the government must match words with action if it truly values education.
“If Nigeria truly values education and wants its universities to compete globally, professors must be paid what they are worth. Anything short of this will only worsen the brain drain,” he warned.
FG rolls out interest-free loan scheme for lecturers
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the federal government had introduced a new financial intervention for workers in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions through the launch of the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF).
The initiative is designed to provide interest-free loans that will improve the welfare, professional capacity, and overall financial stability of both academic and non-academic staff across eligible institutions.
Source: Legit.ng
