The Federal Government has strengthened the autonomy of Nigerian universities by removing them from the requirement to obtain recruitment waivers before employing personnel, President Bola Tinubu has said.
Tinubu disclosed this on Saturday at the maiden convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Azare (FUHSA), in Bauchi State.
The President, who is the university’s Visitor, was represented at the ceremony by the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sunny Echono.
According to him, the reform will enable universities to recruit personnel based on their manpower requirements without seeking approval from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
“As part of our commitment to greater institutional efficiency and autonomy, the Federal Government has removed universities from the requirement to obtain recruitment waivers,” Tinubu said.
He also disclosed that the government had taken steps to remove universities from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and develop a payroll system that would reflect the peculiarities of the university system.
Tinubu said the measures were designed to enable universities to attract and retain qualified personnel, thereby improving teaching, research, innovation and national development.
The President further revealed that 1,798 FUHSA students benefited from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) during the 2025/2026 academic session, representing 43 per cent of the institution’s student population.
He said the initiative was aimed at ensuring that financial constraints did not prevent qualified Nigerians from pursuing higher education.
Tinubu also announced that the Federal Government, through TETFund, allocated N10 billion to the National Research Fund in 2026.
He urged universities, particularly health-focused institutions, to leverage the fund to conduct research capable of addressing Nigeria’s healthcare challenges.
The President congratulated FUHSA’s 50 pioneer graduates, describing their graduation as a significant milestone for the institution, which was established to address gaps in Nigeria’s health sector exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor of FUHSA, Prof. Bala Mohammed Audu, said the university had established 22 academic programmes in less than five years.
He disclosed that 11 of the 13 programmes that had reached accreditation stage received full accreditation, while two received interim accreditation.
Audu said the university’s pioneer graduating class comprised 50 students from the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, including three first-class graduates.
He added that the students developed more than 34 value-added nutritional products during their training, with some having commercialisation potential.
The Vice-Chancellor also appealed for a review of the extension of the nutrition programme from four to five years under the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards, arguing that the existing four-year programme had adequately equipped students with the required skills.
