The Nigerian Universities Commission said it has uncovered 32 fake entities fraudulently selling honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria.

The development comes as the commission issued a stern warning to universities over the growing abuse of honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria, announcing an imminent nationwide clampdown on fake award-granting institutions and individuals misusing the honorary “Doctor” title.

In a statement signed by the Executive Secretary, Prof Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, the commission described the situation as a “matter of growing national concern”, revealing that honorary degrees, meant to celebrate exceptional achievements are increasingly being commercialised, abused, and issued by illegal institutions operating as degree mills across the country.

According to him, an NUC-led investigation uncovered 10 unaccredited foreign universities, 4 unlicensed local universities, 15 professional bodies without degree-awarding powers and 3 non-degree-awarding institutions awarding honorary doctorate degrees.

He noted that, surprisingly, some of these organisations also confer fake professorships, further undermining the credibility of the nation’s academic system.

Prof Ribadu condemned the rising number of recipients who use honorary awards to falsely present themselves as PhD holders, warning that such conduct is not only unethical but punishable under Nigerian fraud-related laws.

“Using the title ‘Dr’ based on an honorary degree without clarification amounts to false representation,” he stressed.

“This trend threatens the integrity of our universities and diminishes public trust in genuine academic qualifications.”

He also expressed concern over widespread disregard for the Keffi Declaration of 2012, an agreement by Nigerian vice-chancellors that forbids universities from awarding honorary degrees to serving public officials and bars recipients from parading themselves with the “Dr” title.

Reaffirming the NUC’s regulatory powers under the Education (National Minimum Standards) Act, Prof Ribadu said only legally approved public or private universities are authorised to award honorary doctorates in Nigeria. Even then, recipients must limit their usage to formats such as Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) or D.Litt (h.c.) and are prohibited from using “Dr” as a professional or academic title, supervising research, practising as scholars or professionals and holding administrative academic roles.

The NUC boss disclosed that a national guideline for the award and use of honorary doctorate degrees has been completed and will soon be published. Once released, the commission working with law enforcement agencies will begin an aggressive crackdown on illegal degree mills and individuals misusing honorary titles.

He appealed to the public, security agencies, and higher-education stakeholders to support the renewed effort to “restore honour to honorary degrees” and defend the dignity of Nigeria’s academic institutions.

“Let us be clear; awarding honorary degrees is a legal responsibility of Nigerian universities and the Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions) Act, Chapter E2, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, L. F. N. 2004, empowers the National Universities Commission to regulate the award and use of honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria.

“For the avoidance of doubt, only approved universities (either public or private) are eligible to award honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria. Furthermore, the recipients of the awards are at liberty to use the nomenclature, such as Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) or the title D.Litt. (h.c.) at the end of their names, but they must refrain from using the title “Dr”, which is the designation for PhD holders and medical personnel.

“Additionally, they are not permitted to use the honorary doctorate degree to practise as scholars or professionals, supervise research or oversee administrative units.

“In conclusion, the National Universities Commission has developed a national guideline for the award and use of honorary doctorate degrees.

“This will soon be published, and the Commission will begin a clampdown on honorary degree mills in collaboration with law enforcement and other relevant government agencies.

“We are soliciting the support of all stakeholders, relevant government agencies, and the public in restoring honour to our honorary degrees.

“Let us defend the dignity of the Nigerian higher education”, the statement reads.

Eze Chidiebere Paul

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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