Retired professors in recognised public universities across the country will now be entitled to pension benefits equivalent to their annual salaries.
This is part of the new agreement between the Nigerian government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
Part of the agreement states that an academic staff member who retires at the rank of professor will receive a pension calculated at 100% of his or her annual salary, marking a significant improvement in post-service welfare for senior academics.
The agreement, however, stipulates that only professors who served uninterruptedly in a recognised university until reaching the mandatory retirement age will qualify.
The 35-page document, obtained by The Guardian, also fixed the retirement age for Professorial Cadre at 70 years.
Section 3.6 of the agreement, which addresses pension entitlements for university academic staff, pension fund administration and compulsory retirement age, states that:
“An academic staff who retires as a professor in a recognized university shall be entitled to pension at a rate equivalent to his annual salary provided that the professor has served continuously in a recognized University up to the retirement age.”
Stakeholders who spoke at the unveiling of the agreement on Wednesday in Abuja said these provisions are aimed at rewarding decades of teaching, research and administrative service rendered by professors, while also boosting morale within the university system.
According to them, it is expected to encourage career progression, help retain experienced scholars, and checkmate the Japa syndrome plaguing the country’s tertiary institutions.
In 2025, ASUU had raised the alarm that no fewer than 309 professors had left the country’s public university system in one month.
Also, Section 3.4 of the agreement, which focuses on ‘Non-salary conditions of service’, makes provision for six-month maternity leave as a fringe benefit.
“Qualified female academic staff shall be entitled to a Maternity Leave of six months as provided in the subsisting Public Service Rules,” Section 3.4(vii) reads.
About the Author
