The National Universities Commission has imposed a one-year moratorium on the establishment of new private universities in Nigeria, effective February 10, 2025.

The university education regulatory body has also approved a 400 per cent hike in application and processing fees for proposed private universities.

Specifically, the regulatory body increased its fee for purchasing application forms for the establishment of new universities from N1 million to N5 million and processing fees from N5 million to N25 million.

The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, yesterday, issued a statement in Abuja, stating that the decision aims to allow the Commission to review pending applications, ensuring that new universities meet the challenges of the 21st century.

The executive secretary noted that inactive applications and those that have only submitted Letters of Intent will not be processed during this period.

The statement reads: “The Commission, in its efforts at repositioning private universities in Nigeria to better meet the needs of the citizenry and for better coordination of the development of the Private University Education sub-sector of the Nigerian University System (NUS), has identified the need to review the guidelines for the establishment of private universities. This is to ensure that newly established private universities are positioned to meet the challenges of the 21st Century.

“The fee for purchase of application forms for the establishment of a private university is hereby reviewed from N1 million to N5 million.

“The processing fee for application for the establishment of a private university is hereby reviewed from N5 million to N25 million.”