Nigeria starts firing workers with degrees from unaccredited schools in Benin Republic and Togo
On Thursday, December 5, the Nigerian government confirmed that it has begun firing workers who hold degrees from unaccredited private schools in Benin Republic and Togo. These workers graduated between 2017 and now.
Segun Imohiosen, the spokesperson for the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, shared the news. He said the effort is part of a bigger plan to clean up the country’s civil service.
Back in August, the government announced that only eight universities were accredited to offer degrees to Nigerians in Benin Republic and Togo.
This change came after a journalist, Umar Audu from Daily Nigerian, secretly got a degree from a university in Benin Republic in just two months. He used this degree to join the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), a program that all Nigerian graduates must complete.
As a result of this discovery, the Nigerian government banned the recognition of degrees from some universities in these two countries. The government also created a special committee to investigate fake degrees.
In a later report, the then Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, revealed that over 22,500 Nigerians had obtained fake degrees from schools in Benin Republic and Togo. These degrees would be canceled.
Now, government agencies like the NYSC are putting the rule into action. Caroline Embu, the NYSC Director of Information, confirmed that five workers had already been fired for holding unverified degrees from Benin Republic and Togo.
This update follows a warning by former Nigerian senator, Shehu Sani, in November 2024, about the government’s action to fire workers with fake degrees from these countries.
