The National Universities Commission (NUC) has raised the application fee for setting up private universities in Nigeria to N25 million from N5 million.
This marks an increase of over 400%. The Executive Secretary of the commission, Abdullahi Ribadu, shared this information in a statement on Monday, clarifying that the increase in fees is intended to enhance coordination and ensure that newly established private universities are prepared to address the challenges of the 21st century.
It is worth noting that the NUC had earlier raised the fee for obtaining application forms for the establishment of a private university from N1 million to N5 million.
Moreover, the Commission has adjusted the processing fee for applications from N5 million to N25 million.
The regulatory body stated that the revised N25 million fee will be communicated to applicants who have acquired the application form at the previous price of N1 million but have not yet paid the processing fee.
“They are also required to make payments within 30 working days or risk losing their pending applications,” the statement indicated.
The NUC pointed out that since 1999, the Federal Government has granted approval for the establishment of 149 private universities based on its recommendations.