NIGERIA · UNIVERSITIES
Key Facts
- —What is ASUU The Academic Staff Union of Universities, the lecturers’ union. It has shut Nigerian universities repeatedly over four decades.
- —What happened Its branches at three Lagos state universities declared a total and indefinite strike, effective 15 September 2026.
- —Which universities Lagos State University at Ojo, Lagos State University of Education at Oto-Ijanikin, and Lagos State University of Science and Technology at Ikorodu.
- —What they want Lagos State to adopt the December 2025 national agreement between ASUU and the federal government.
- —The money in it A 40% rise in emoluments, delivered mainly through a new allowance rather than through basic salary.
- —What happens to students Teaching stops until the strike is called off. No negotiation date has been announced.
Three Lagos universities stopped teaching on Monday. The lecturers want their state to pay what the federal government already agreed.
ASUU branches at three Lagos state universities declared a total and indefinite strike from 15 September 2026. They are demanding that Lagos State adopt the December 2025 agreement between the union and the federal government.
The Three Universities
Lagos State University, at Ojo, is the oldest and largest of the three.
Lagos State University of Education sits at Oto-Ijanikin, and Lagos State University of Science and Technology at Ikorodu.
All three are owned and funded by the Lagos State government rather than by Abuja.
Together they teach tens of thousands of students in Nigeria’s commercial capital.
Who Called It
The declaration was signed by three branch coordinators.
Dr Olusegun Babalola coordinates ASUU at Lagos State University.
Comrade Grace Olayemi is acting coordinator at Lagos State University of Education.
Comrade Murisiku Onigemo coordinates at Lagos State University of Science and Technology.
How It Got Here
The branches issued a fourteen-day ultimatum on 31 August 2026.
A final warning followed on 10 September.
The ultimatum expired on 13 September without the Lagos State government opening talks.
The strike began two days later, described as total, comprehensive and indefinite.
What Domestication Means
The December 2025 agreement was reached between ASUU and the federal government after a sixteen-year renegotiation.
It was signed on 14 January 2026 and takes effect from 1 January 2026.
Federal universities are covered directly. State universities are not, because their owner is the state government.
Domestication is the step where a state adopts the federal terms for its own institutions. Lagos has not taken it.
The Forty Per Cent
The agreement provides a 40% upward review of emoluments.
Most of it comes through a new Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance rather than through basic salary.
It also creates a professorial cadre allowance of N140,000 a month for professors, about US$105, and N70,000 for readers, some US$53.
Calling it a 40% salary increase overstates what lands in the basic pay line.
What Else Is on the List
The branches want welfare protections for serving staff and for retired staff.
Retirees are a recurring grievance in Nigerian university disputes and are often left out of coverage.
The union frames the whole dispute as implementation rather than as a new demand.
The Lagos State government had not responded publicly as of 16 September.
Why Nigerian Strikes Last
ASUU shut federal universities for eight months in 2022 and for shorter periods in most years since.
The pattern is an agreement signed, implementation delayed, an ultimatum, a strike, and a partial settlement.
Students lose academic sessions, and graduation timetables slip by months or years.
Private universities do not strike, which is one reason Nigerian families who can afford them choose them.
What It Means for Students and Families
Lectures, examinations and supervision stop at the three institutions until the strike ends.
Students at federal universities in Lagos, including the University of Lagos, are not affected by this action.
Nigerian employers plan graduate recruitment around academic calendars that strikes make unreliable.
A short strike costs weeks. The 2022 federal strike cost an academic year.
What to Watch
Whether the Lagos State government opens talks, which is the only thing that ends this.
Whether other state university branches join, which is how a local strike becomes a national one.
The national ASUU position under its president, Professor Christopher Piwuna.
And whether Lagos domesticates the agreement outright or negotiates its own version.
More: Africa news and analysis, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which universities are on strike?
Lagos State University, Lagos State University of Education and Lagos State University of Science and Technology, from 15 September 2026.
Is the strike indefinite?
Yes. The branches describe it as total, comprehensive and indefinite.
What do the lecturers want?
That Lagos State adopt the December 2025 agreement between ASUU and the federal government for its own universities.
What does the agreement provide?
A 40% upward review of emoluments, delivered mainly through a new Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance rather than basic salary.
Are federal universities in Lagos affected?
No. This action covers the three state-owned universities only.
Has the state government responded?
No public response had been reported as of 16 September 2026.
Sources: ASUU LASU, LASUED and LASUSTECH branch statements, TVC News, The Sun, Daily Trust, Blueprint, BusinessDay.
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