FG approves guidelines to regulate honorary doctorate awards

Nigeria's Federal Government has implemented a comprehensive set of guidelines to regulate the award and use of honorary doctorates, aiming to restore credibility and integrity to the university system. The new policy, approved by the Federal Executive Council, establishes strict rules for eligibility, nomination, conferment, usage, and revocation of these academic honors.

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The Federal Government has approved comprehensive guidelines for the award and use of honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria to strengthen academic integrity, transparency, and the credibility of the university system.

Announcing the policy, Minister of Education Dr. Tunji Alausa stated that the guidelines were introduced to address growing concerns over the abuse, commercialization, and misuse of honorary academic awards. Developed by the National Universities Commission (NUC), the framework sets clear boundaries for the process.

Under the new regulations, only universities that have successfully graduated their first cohort of PhD students are eligible to confer honorary doctoral degrees. Furthermore, institutions are limited to awarding a maximum of three honorary doctorates during each convocation ceremony. All honorary degrees must now carry the designation 'Honoris Causa,' and recipients are prohibited from using the title 'Dr.' based solely on receiving such an award.

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The policy restricts eligibility to approved universities that have graduated their first PhD set and limits awards to a maximum of three per convocation.

To ensure compliance, the government has established oversight mechanisms, including a Special Fraud Unit under the NUC. Universities are required to publicly disclose the names of honorary degree recipients, organize orientation programs for awardees, and implement procedures for the revocation of awards when necessary. These measures are intended to strengthen academic integrity and transparency across Nigerian universities.

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All honorary degrees must carry the designation ‘Honoris Causa,’ and recipients are prohibited from using the title ‘Dr.’