The Federal Government has unveiled fresh guidelines regulating the conferment and use of honorary doctorate degrees in Nigeria, barring recipients from adopting the title “Dr.” and cautioning tertiary institutions against the misuse and commercialization of such honours.
The Minister of Education, Maruf Tunji Alausa, announced the new policy, explaining that it was formulated by the National Universities Commission and subsequently approved by the Federal Executive Council. According to him, the measure is designed to strengthen transparency, accountability, and academic standards across Nigeria’s university system.
Under the revised framework, only universities that have successfully produced at least one cohort of PhD graduates will be eligible to award honorary doctorate degrees. In addition, institutions are restricted to conferring no more than three honorary doctorates during a single convocation ceremony.
The guidelines also stipulate that every honorary doctorate certificate must prominently bear the inscription “Honoris Causa.” Recipients of such honours will no longer be permitted to use the title “Dr.” as a prefix to their names. Instead, they are expected to clearly indicate that the qualification is honorary whenever it is referenced.
To enforce compliance, the government has established a monitoring mechanism that includes a dedicated unit within the NUC tasked with investigating breaches of the policy. Universities will also be required to publicly identify honorary degree recipients, educate awardees on the limits of the recognition, and maintain procedures for revoking honorary awards when circumstances warrant such action.
The Federal Government further warned that institutions that disregard the regulations could face severe penalties, including the suspension of accreditation activities and the dissolution of their governing councils. The Ministry of Education stated that the reforms are intended to curb the indiscriminate award of honorary doctorates and safeguard the value, reputation, and integrity of academic honours in the country.