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The National Universities Commission (NUC) has prohibited Nigerian universities from awarding honorary doctorate degrees to individuals currently holding public office.
The Commission also announced plans to intensify efforts against illegal institutions granting fake degrees across the country.
Professor Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, NUC’s Executive Secretary, disclosed this in Abuja on Friday while receiving a report from a committee investigating the awarding and misuse of honorary doctorates in Nigeria.
The measures aim to tackle the widespread abuse of honorary degrees, including a firm ban on giving such awards to serving public officials.
According to Ribadu, the Commission’s actions were prompted by alarming findings from a nationwide probe into how honorary degrees are granted and utilised.
He explained that although these degrees are intended to honour exceptional service or achievements, they have increasingly been misapplied.
The problem has been aggravated by the emergence of unaccredited and illegal institutions, both domestic and foreign, that operate as honorary degree mills.
Ribadu highlighted that the investigation revealed numerous breaches of the 2012 Keffi Declaration—an agreement among Nigerian university Vice-Chancellors regulating the conferment of honorary degrees.
This declaration explicitly prohibits universities from awarding honorary doctorates to public officials currently in office and warns recipients against using the title “Dr” without proper clarification.
Ribadu emphasised that this is not only an ethical issue but also a legal one, as using the “Dr” title based on an honorary degree without disclosure constitutes false representation punishable under Nigerian fraud laws.
He cautioned that such misuse damages the credibility of universities and erodes public trust in legitimate academic qualifications.
The report identified 32 entities acting as honorary degree mills in Nigeria, including 10 unaccredited foreign universities, 4 unlicensed local universities, 15 professional bodies without degree-awarding authority, and 3 other non-degree-granting organisations. Some even go so far as to confer fake professorships.
Ribadu reaffirmed that only accredited Nigerian universities have the legal authority to award honorary doctorates.
Furthermore, recipients must use the proper designation, such as Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa), rather than adopting the “Dr” title reserved for holders of earned doctoral degrees and medical practitioners.
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