The House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to reconsider and rescind its blanket invalidation of university degree certificates obtained from the Republics of Benin and Togo.
The resolution followed the adoption of a report by the House Committee on Public Petitions, which reviewed several concerns raised by affected individuals and stakeholders after the government announced a ban on recognising academic qualifications from the two West African countries.
In its recommendation, the House urged the Federal Government to replace the sweeping restriction with a more targeted, case-by-case verification system aimed at identifying and addressing confirmed cases of academic fraud.
Lawmakers argued that such an approach would help punish wrongdoing without unfairly penalising Nigerians who obtained legitimate degrees from accredited institutions in the affected countries.
The House also advised the Federal Ministry of Education to collaborate closely with relevant education authorities in Benin Republic and Togo to strengthen verification procedures, improve cross-border academic oversight, and curb fraudulent practices linked to foreign degree programmes.
In addition, the lawmakers recommended that the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Information and the National Orientation Agency, intensify public awareness campaigns to educate Nigerians on how to verify the accreditation status of foreign universities.
The campaign would also guide prospective students on obtaining proper homologation or equivalence certification for foreign qualifications where necessary.
The House further stressed that future government actions and policies relating to foreign academic qualifications should be consistent with Nigeria’s bilateral agreements and its regional and international treaty obligations.
Background to the Ban
In January 2024, the Federal Government suspended the accreditation and evaluation of degree certificates obtained from universities in Benin Republic and Togo.
The decision followed revelations from an investigative report showing how a degree certificate was allegedly obtained from a university in Benin Republic in less than two months.
Reacting to the development at the time, the spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Education, Augustina Obilor-Duru, said the report reinforced long-standing concerns that some individuals were exploiting irregular channels to acquire academic qualifications they did not legitimately earn.
According to her, the ministry strongly condemned the practice and announced the suspension of evaluation and accreditation of degrees from the two countries starting January 2, 2024, pending the outcome of a comprehensive investigation.
The probe was expected to involve several institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, education authorities in Benin Republic and Togo, the Department of State Services (DSS), and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The ministry also appealed to members of the public to provide useful information that could help investigators identify fraudulent institutions and develop lasting measures to prevent similar occurrences.
Officials noted that the government had been grappling with the persistent challenge of illegal institutions—both within and outside Nigeria—that exploit unsuspecting students, as well as individuals who deliberately patronise such outlets to obtain illegitimate qualifications.
The controversy gained widespread attention following a 2023 undercover investigation by a journalist who revealed how he was able to obtain a university degree from an institution in Benin Republic within two months and was subsequently mobilised for the National Youth Service Corps programme.
The House of Representatives’ latest resolution seeks to strike a balance between combating academic fraud and protecting the interests of Nigerians who earned legitimate qualifications abroad.
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