The Senate has directed its committees to stop processing bills seeking the establishment of new universities and other tertiary institutions, in line with the Federal Government’s six-year moratorium on new institutions.

The directive, announced by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, during plenary on Wednesday, affects the Committees on Tertiary Institutions and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund.

Bamidele said, “The policy was necessary to allow existing universities and other tertiary institutions to consolidate their operations and improve infrastructure before additional institutions were considered.”

He urged the Clerk of the Senate, Emmanuel Odo, to guide lawmakers on the policy, noting that some legislators might not be aware of the Federal Government’s position.

“I also advised education committees to avoid presenting bills seeking the establishment of new institutions for consideration during plenary,” the Senate Leader stated.

Bamidele acknowledged that lawmakers sometimes found it difficult to reject requests from colleagues seeking legislative support for the establishment of universities and other tertiary institutions.

Supporting the directive, the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, disclosed that President Bola Tinubu had discussed the matter with the National Assembly leadership.

Akpabio said the President was opposed to establishing new universities, polytechnics and other tertiary institutions for the next five to seven years.

He explained that the moratorium was intended to give existing institutions time to develop their infrastructure and commence effective academic operations.

The Senate President observed that several recently established universities existed largely on paper, with some yet to secure permanent sites or complete the necessary site-clearance processes.

He stressed that establishing a university was a serious national responsibility that should not be treated with the same simplicity as setting up primary schools.

According to him, universities were national institutions expected to admit students from different parts of the country, irrespective of their geographical locations.

“The Federal Government had made efforts to distribute universities across different parts of the country, making it necessary to consolidate existing investments,” he added.

Akpabio consequently directed the Clerk of the Senate to ensure that bills seeking the establishment of new tertiary institutions were no longer listed for consideration.

The Senate subsequently adjourned plenary until next Tuesday.

The Federal Government had earlier announced, in March, a six-year suspension of the establishment of privately owned universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, as part of efforts to improve the quality and sustainability of existing institutions.

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, announced the decision after a Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Tinubu at the State House.

Alausa said the temporary freeze was aimed at strengthening existing institutions rather than allowing further expansion without adequate infrastructure and resources.

He cited figures from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, which showed that more than 2.3 million candidates applied for admission in the previous year, while fewer than 228,000 secured places in public universities.

The minister said the government was concerned about the gap between the number of admission seekers and available spaces, as well as the need to improve the capacity of existing institutions.

The Federal Executive Council also restored the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-formal Education to its full status as an independent commission.

Alausa said the decision followed the presentation of an ambitious programme by the commission’s chairman to educate more than 50 million young adults within two to three years and improve their digital literacy.

The council also approved amendments to the National Postgraduate Medical College Act to recognise medical fellowships as equivalent to PhD qualifications for academic progression, and approved comprehensive insurance coverage for the 180 federal unity schools nationwide.