Kaduna gov approves ASUU request, urges KASU lecturers to end strike

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Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has approved the implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-Academic Staff Union of Universities salary agreement for academic staff of Kaduna State University, with effect from October 2026.

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The approval came amid the indefinite strike embarked upon by the KASU branch of ASUU on Wednesday over unresolved demands.

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The Commissioner of Education, Prof Abubakar Sani Sambo, disclosed this at a press briefing in Kaduna on Friday, saying the approval followed the recommendations of a nine-member Government-KASU/ASUU Negotiation Committee constituted by the governor.

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Sambo said the approved package included the revised Consolidated University Academic Salary Structure, Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance and other applicable salary adjustments and allowances contained in the 2025 FGN-ASUU agreement.

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He said the committee, headed by the Secretary to the State Government, Dr AbdulKadir Muazu Meyere, was established “to consider the demands of the union and develop a fair and sustainable framework for implementation.”

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The commissioner urged the striking lecturers and other university-based unions to reciprocate the government’s gesture by returning to dialogue.

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“It is against this record of commitment and intervention that the government calls on ASUU, SSANU, NASU and NAAT to reciprocate the gesture by embracing dialogue as the preferred pathway for resolving differences,” Sambo stated.

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He added, “A government that listens and responds to legitimate concerns deserves a university community equally committed to constructive engagement, industrial harmony and the public interest.”

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PUNCH Online had reported that the KASU branch of ASUU had earlier embarked on a two-week warning strike, prompting the state government to constitute the negotiation committee.

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The government also approved a one-off payment of N300m Earned Academic Allowance to address part of a backlog of over N800m in accumulated entitlements dating back to 2016.

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Sambo said the latest approval was consistent with Sani’s commitment to education and human-capital development, noting that at least 25 per cent of the state’s annual budget had been allocated to education since the governor assumed office.

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He said the administration had also constructed and renovated 3,267 classrooms, provided 1,194 toilets and 90 boreholes, and supplied 57,777 pieces of furniture for learners and teachers.

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The commissioner added that the government had approved a 50 per cent reduction in tertiary education fees and extended the retirement age of teachers from 60 to 65 years.

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He, however, charged KASU to translate improved staff welfare into better academic performance.

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“Improved staff welfare must translate into improved teaching, research, innovation, student outcomes and global competitiveness,” Sambo said.

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He urged the university management to pursue measures that would improve its standing internationally, including its performance in the Times Higher Education rankings.

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In his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of KASU, Prof Abdullahi Ibrahim Musa, said the administration had made unprecedented interventions in staff welfare and the university’s operations.

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He said, “No government has done what the Governor Uba Sani administration has done for the university.”

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Musa disclosed that the government had released over N800m in withheld salaries over the past three years, in addition to N146m for outstanding SIWES allowances inherited from previous administrations.

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“KASU has consequently cleared these inherited withheld salary obligations, demonstrating the government’s resolve to address longstanding staff welfare issues,” he said.

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The vice-chancellor added that the state government had disbursed over N200m in overhead funding to the university in 2026 alone to support laboratory chemicals and reagents, students’ field trips, examinations and other essential academic activities.

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He further disclosed that over N300m had been invested in the accreditation of more than 57 academic programmes and resource-verification exercises for 60 postgraduate programmes by the National Universities Commission.

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Also speaking, the Chairman of the KASU Governing Council, Dr Ibrahim Umar, said the governor’s interventions demonstrated his commitment to education as the foundation of human-capital development.

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Umar said the administration had also made significant progress in addressing the out-of-school children crisis, claiming that more than 300,000 children had been returned to education from an estimated inherited population of over 500,000 in 2023.

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“This significant turnaround reflects the administration’s commitment to ensuring that every Kaduna child has the opportunity to access education and build a better future,” he said.

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He added that the government’s institutional reforms had also transformed the Kaduna State Schools Quality Assurance Authority into a more technology-driven and data-based institution.

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The government appealed to all parties to regard the implementation of the salary agreement as “an investment in people, a vote of confidence in KASU and a renewed compact for excellence,” while urging the university community to return to dialogue and ensure industrial harmony.

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