University lecturers across Nigeria have called on the Federal Government to fund professors’ pensions using a framework similar to those applied to retired judges, permanent secretaries and military generals, under which beneficiaries receive retirement benefits equivalent to their last salaries in service.
The demand follows a recently signed agreement between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which includes a 40 per cent salary increase, improved academic earned allowances and enhanced welfare packages for lecturers.
Under the agreement, senior professors are entitled to a monthly allowance of ₦140,000, while associate professors will receive ₦70,000 monthly. One of the most contentious provisions guarantees professors who retire at the statutory age of 70 a pension equivalent to their full annual salary at retirement.
While the agreement has been hailed as a major step towards ending decades of disruptive strikes in public universities, concerns have emerged over the long-term sustainability of the pension arrangement in the absence of a clearly defined funding mechanism.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Edo State University, Iyamho, Prof. Ben Ugheoke, said professors would not be the first category of public servants to enjoy such pension benefits, noting that judges and permanent secretaries already retire on full pay.
“Professors who retire at 70 will not be the first to benefit from an arrangement where an employee retires with a pension equivalent to their full salary at retirement. Judges do, permanent secretaries do,” Ugheoke said.
He added, “The key question is how the scheme is implemented for those categories. Can the same model be deployed for retired professors?”
However, some lecturers dismissed concerns over sustainability, insisting that the Federal Government has the capacity to meet its obligations.
A senior lecturer at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Dr. Hashim Suleiman, described the fears as exaggerated and politically motivated.
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“The fears are far-fetched and amount to moral panic,” he said. “This government has done something tangible by breaking the long-standing culture of taking academics for granted.”
Questioning the selective outrage over professors’ pensions, Suleiman asked, “Is it because it concerns Nigerian academics? What about the retirement packages of generals and political elites?”
Similarly, a lecturer at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Abuja, Dr. Oboromemi Weinoh, urged Nigerians to give the government the benefit of the doubt.
“The progress achieved is commendable, and I expect full implementation of the agreement,” she said, adding that lifetime salaries for professors were not unprecedented, given existing arrangements for judges and permanent secretaries.
Another NOUN lecturer, Dr. Nathan Emmanuel, praised President Bola Tinubu for prioritising lecturers’ welfare, describing the pension provision as deliberate and legally sound.
“The Pension Reform Act 2014 does not abolish this entitlement,” Emmanuel said. “It places responsibility on the employer to cover any shortfall where contributory pension savings fall short.”
He added that the policy was neither excessive nor unsustainable, noting that the number of professors retiring at 70 is relatively small and actuarially manageable.
“For decades, professors have endured delayed salaries, poor research funding, frequent strikes and harsh working conditions. This policy is a fair acknowledgement of their sacrifices,” he said.
Nigeria’s public university system has long been plagued by chronic underfunding, dilapidated infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms and poor staff welfare, leading to repeated industrial actions by ASUU and prolonged shutdowns of universities.
Between 1999 and 2023, ASUU embarked on multiple strikes over funding, university autonomy and conditions of service, severely disrupting academic calendars nationwide.
