The Federal Government's agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities has commenced implementation across federal universities, but 57 state owned institutions remain largely excluded, raising concerns about deepening inequality within Nigeria's tertiary education system.

Ten state universities have partially complied with provisions of the Consolidated Academic and Tools Allowance, according to ASUU zonal leadership updates, while the majority are still awaiting governing council approvals and state government endorsements. The absence of state governors and heads of 67 state owned universities at the Abuja signing ceremony earlier this year signalled their limited readiness, and has fuelled speculation that the agreement carries no binding obligation on sub national governments.

Among federal universities, institutions including the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, University of Ilorin, Obafemi Awolowo University and the University of Port Harcourt have begun benefiting from implementation, while the University of Abuja, Bayero University Kano and Ahmadu Bello University are yet to comply and are reportedly preparing fresh protests.

The agreement introduces a 40% upward review of academic salaries alongside a new Professorial Cadre Allowance. Professors will receive ₦1.74 million per annum, equivalent to ₦140,000 monthly, while Readers will earn an additional ₦840,000 annually. Federal university lecturers on Grade Level 7, formerly earning between ₦170,000 and ₦220,000, will now receive between ₦238,000 and ₦308,000. Grade Level 8 academics move from ₦250,000 to ₦300,000 up to between ₦350,000 and ₦420,000, while Grade Level 9 academics previously earning between ₦350,000 and ₦400,000 will now take home between ₦490,000 and ₦560,000.

State university lecturers, by contrast, currently earn between ₦120,000 and ₦150,000 at graduate assistant level, rising to between ₦580,000 and ₦700,000 for professors, with South East states identified as paying the lowest salaries nationwide. The ASUU Chairman at Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Andrew Apeh, stated that South East state governments "deliberately do not implement agreements the federal government reaches with ASUU," adding that earned academic allowances paid elsewhere are entirely absent in the region.

The ASUU Benin Zone has threatened an indefinite strike across seven state universities in Edo, Delta and Ondo states if implementation does not reflect in July salaries, while the Kano Zone has issued a similar warning covering institutions in Kano, Kaduna and Jigawa states.

The agreement also commits the Federal Government to providing ₦30 billion through a Stabilisation and Restoration Fund, disbursed in three annual instalments of ₦10 billion from 2026 to 2028, alongside a proposed National Research Council bill targeting at least 1% of GDP for research funding.

ASUU President Prof. Chris Piwuna confirmed that the National Universities Commission has written to state governments urging immediate compliance, while analysts warned that continued inaction risks accelerating academic staff migration from state to federal institutions, further eroding teaching quality and research capacity across the country.