2009 Agreement: ASUU Pressures FG, Awaits Congress Directive

2009 Agreement: ASUU Pressures FG, Awaits Congress Directive
FG holds crucial meeting today to address lecturers’ pay and conditions
Lecturers demand salary review, improved welfare to avert fresh strike

Following Tuesday’s nationwide protests across universities, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has announced it will hold congresses in its branches to determine its next line of action.

This comes as the Federal Government convenes a high-level meeting today to address long-standing disputes over the implementation of the renegotiated 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement.

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Earlier this year, President Bola Tinubu’s administration released N50 billion to settle earned academic allowances. However, ASUU insists on clear commitments regarding improved salaries, conditions of service, university funding, autonomy, and a review of laws governing the National Universities Commission and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board.

Today’s meeting is expected to be attended by the Ministers of Education and Labour, as well as officials from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission. Sources confirmed that discussions will focus on reconciling the Yayale Ahmed draft, concluded in December 2024, with the original 2009 agreement and the Nimi Briggs report. Key issues include phasing fiscal commitments into the national budget and producing a binding instrument for implementation.

ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, stressed that union members are frustrated with repeated delays. “I truly hope they will come up with something tangible. Our members are tired of words and no action,” he said. However, he clarified that ASUU was not invited to today’s meeting, noting that the union would consult members before announcing its next steps.

Lecturers have consistently decried poor pay and deteriorating working conditions. Under the current salary structure, professors earn between N525,000 and N633,000 monthly, while graduate assistants take home just over N125,000. Many academics have lamented stagnant wages, poor facilities, and worsening morale, which have triggered brain drain in the sector.

A former University of Lagos Vice Chancellor, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, described lecturers’ conditions as discouraging, while Prof. Tunde Adeoye of UNILAG and Prof. Andrew Haruna, Secretary of the Committee of Vice Chancellors, urged the government to urgently review salaries and create an enabling environment for teaching and research.

As ASUU congresses prepare to chart the union’s next course, all eyes remain on today’s government deliberations, which may determine whether universities face another prolonged shutdown.