Nigerian Government Prohibits Honorary Doctorate Degrees for Current Officials

Table of Contents

1. Ban on Honorary Doctorate Degrees
2. Announcement by NUC
3. Misuse of Honorary Degrees
4. NUC Investigation Findings
5. Keffi Declaration of 2012
6. Ethical and Legal Implications
7. Impact on University Integrity

The Federal Government has imposed a ban on the awarding of honorary doctorate degrees to currently serving public officials.
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The Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, made this announcement on Friday while receiving a report from a committee investigating the awarding and public use/misuse of honorary doctorate degrees by recipients in Nigeria.

The commission stated that this decision was prompted by the alleged misuse of such degrees, noting that the Commission felt compelled to act following alarming findings from a nationwide investigation into the awarding and usage of honorary degrees.

“These degrees are intended to recognize exceptional service or achievements, but unfortunately, they have increasingly been misapplied,” he remarked.

The NUC head indicated that the trend has been exacerbated by the emergence of unaccredited and illegal institutions, both domestic and foreign, functioning as honorary degree mills.

According to him, the NUC’s investigation uncovered widespread violations, particularly of the Keffi Declaration of 2012, which is an agreement among Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian universities to regulate the awarding of honorary degrees.

“The declaration explicitly prohibits universities from granting honorary doctorates to serving public officials and advises recipients against using the title ‘Dr’ without proper disclosure.

“This issue transcends ethics; it is a legal matter. Using the title ‘Dr’ based on an honorary degree without clarification constitutes false representation, which is subject to penalties under various fraud-related laws in Nigeria,” Ribadu asserted.

He cautioned that the misuse of honorary titles undermines the integrity of universities and erodes public trust in legitimate academic qualifications.