Rabiu Omaku
Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has announced that his administration is committing an additional ₦262 million monthly to help resolve the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK).
Governor Sule made this known while speaking at the 2026 Nasarawa Youth Summit in Akwanga on Wednesday, organised by the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Nasarawa State Chapter, in commemoration of the International Youth Day.
This is just as the Governor appealed to the striking lecturers to call off the action and allow students, who are currently preparing for examinations, to return to their studies.
He explained that his administration inherited a subvention arrangement of ₦140 million monthly to the University, an amount that was insufficient to meet lecturers’ salaries and had previously led to augmentation from levies and charges on students to cover shortfalls.
He recalled that his administration subsequently took over the full payment of lecturers’ salaries directly, a figure that has since risen to over ₦400 million monthly following the establishment of new faculties, including the Faculty of Engineering in Gudi and the Faculty of Medicine.
Governor Sule stated that the current dispute centres on the payment of an additional allowance owed to lecturers for extra academic workload, which had accumulated to an outstanding figure of about ₦362 million on top of the existing monthly wage bill.
The Governor disclosed that, following engagement with student leaders who approached him directly rather than join the industrial action, Government agreed to shoulder ₦262 million of the outstanding allowance, with the University management expected to contribute the balance.
Governor Sule commended the Students’ Union of NSUK for engaging Government through dialogue instead of joining the strike, describing their approach as a model of responsible youth engagement.
He appealed to the University management and ASUU to reciprocate this show of goodwill by resuming academic activities, noting that Government ‘s capacity to fund the University, like other sectors, remains constrained by the broader economic realities facing States following the removal of fuel subsidy and unification of the foreign exchange rate.
The Governor assured that his administration remains committed to the welfare of students and lecturers at NSUK and reaffirmed Government ‘s readiness to continue supporting the institution within available resources.
