Nigeria Bans Honorary ‘Dr.’ Titles for Serving Officials

Federal Government, acting through the National Universities Commission (NUC), has immediately banned all Nigerian universities from awarding honorary doctorate degrees to serving public officials.

The decisive action was announced in Abuja on Friday by the NUC Executive Secretary, Professor Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, following the submission of a report from a special investigative committee. The committee was tasked with probing the widespread misuse of honorary degrees in the country.

Professor Ribadu revealed that a nationwide investigation uncovered “alarming” findings, prompting the commission to act. He stated that the prestigious awards, intended to recognize outstanding service, are being increasingly devalued and misused.

“These degrees are meant to recognise outstanding service or achievements, but unfortunately, they have increasingly been misused,” Ribadu said.

The NUC chief attributed the problem to a rise in unaccredited and illegal institutions, which he described as “honorary degree mills.” The investigation identified 32 such entities operating in Nigeria, including 10 unaccredited foreign universities, 4 unlicensed local universities, and 15 professional bodies with no legal authority to award degrees.

The probe also found widespread violations of the Keffi Declaration of 2012, an agreement by university vice-chancellors that explicitly forbids awarding honorary doctorates to serving public officials and cautions recipients against improperly using the title “Dr.”

Ribadu emphasized that the misuse of titles is not merely an ethical breach but a legal one. “Using the title ‘Dr’ based on an honorary degree without clarification amounts to false representation, which is punishable under various fraud-related laws in Nigeria,” he warned.

He reiterated that only approved universities are legally empowered to award honorary doctorates, and recipients must use the correct nomenclature, such as “Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa),” rather than simply adopting the title “Dr.”