The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has agreed to accept the Federal Government’s revised offer of a 40 per cent salary increase for its members, effectively ending months of deadlock in the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement.
Newsonspot reports that sources familiar with the talks disclosed that during the final negotiation session held in Abuja on November 24-25, 2025, the government committee chaired by former Head of Service Alhaji Yayale Ahmed informed ASUU leaders that 40 per cent represented the highest increment the administration could accommodate. The union had earlier rejected a 35 per cent proposal.
Although the ASUU National Executive Council (NEC) has endorsed the new offer, zonal and branch leaders are required to brief members before the union formally communicates its acceptance to the government and proceeds to sign the renegotiated agreement.
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A progress report signed by ASUU President Professor Chris Piwuna and seen by journalists in Abuja outlines wide-ranging agreements reached across seven key areas: university funding, autonomy and governance, conditions of service, salary structure, earned academic allowances, implementation mechanisms, and administrative reforms.
Key Highlights of the Agreement
University Autonomy and Governance: Full autonomy reaffirmed; vice-chancellors to be appointed strictly on merit without preference for host-community indigenes; governing council membership to comply with the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act; heads of department, deans, and provosts to be elected internally.
Funding and Budgeting: Adoption of a needs-based budgeting model; commitment to protect university lands; exploration of new innovative revenue sources, including taxes, to ensure sustainable funding; strengthening of research funding through the National Research Council and private-sector partnerships.
Academic Staff Structure: Abolition of the controversial pyramidal promotion system; future promotions to be based on research output and performance rather than vacancy availability.
Import Incentives: Duty-free importation approved for books, laboratory equipment, journals, teaching aids, and sustainable energy materials.
Earned Academic Allowances: Universities to receive annual funding equivalent to 12 per cent of their academic staff wage bill for the payment of earned allowances.
Salary Review Mechanism: Automatic upward adjustment of university lecturers’ salaries whenever public-sector wages are reviewed; comprehensive review of the entire agreement every three years.
Implementation Framework: Establishment of a monitoring unit within the National Universities Commission (NUC), a joint implementation committee, and amendment of relevant laws where necessary.
The agreement also includes a non-victimisation clause protecting all parties involved in the negotiations.
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The development comes days after ASUU’s one-month ultimatum to the Federal Government expired on Saturday, November 22, 2025. The union had threatened an indefinite nationwide strike over alleged government inaction on the 2009 agreement, outstanding earned academic allowances, withheld salaries, and the delayed release of the university revitalisation fund.
Minister of Education, Dr Olatunji Alausa, has repeatedly stated that the Federal Government has substantially met ASUU’s demands.
With the NEC’s acceptance of the 40 per cent salary offer and the resolution of most outstanding issues, the threat of an immediate strike by university lecturers has been averted, pending formal ratification by ASUU branches and the signing of the new agreement.
