The Federal Government has set October 6, 2025, as the commencement date for mandatory nationwide verification of academic credentials, as part of efforts to curb certificate racketeering and restore integrity to Nigeria’s education system.
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The directive is contained in a service-wide circular signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, and addressed to all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), as well as public and private tertiary institutions.
According to the circular, the enforcement will be implemented through the National Credential Verification Service (NCVS), which operates under the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD).
It mandates that both existing and prospective staff in public and private institutions must obtain clearance from the NCVS before their appointments can be confirmed. Each verified credential will be assigned a National Credential Number (NCN) with security codes to ensure traceability and authenticity.
Government officials said the new mechanism represents a shift from past interventions, creating a centralised quality assurance system that is independent of individual institutions. The initiative draws its legal backing from Section 10(1) of the Education (National Minimum Standards and Establishment of Institutions) Act 1985.
The NCVS was launched in March 2025 by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, following Federal Executive Council approval. At the time, Alausa described the policy as “a decisive move to end fake degrees, phoney honours, and diploma mills undermining Nigeria’s education credibility.”
In a statement on Wednesday, Ms. Haula Galadima, Executive Director of Communication and Cybersecurity at NERD, confirmed that all verification services are now fully operational.
She urged MDAs, tertiary institutions, and private employers to enrol their NERD focal persons and records officers through the onboarding portal.
“NERD is a federation initiative and the nation’s standard for higher education digitisation,” Galadima said. “It is designed to protect national security, safeguard education integrity, and enhance the global competitiveness of Nigeria’s academic system.”
She explained that NERD administers unique identifiers such as the National Student Number (NSN), the National Credential Number (NCN), and the National Document Number (NDN), allowing instant authentication of certificates and awards. These will also feed into a National Database of Resource Persons.
“By October 6, fake degrees and unearned honours will no longer slip through the cracks. Every credential presented in Nigeria must be verifiable at the click of a button,” Galadima said.
The NERD Governing Council, chaired by the Minister of Education, includes representatives of the National Universities Commission, the National Board for Technical Education, the National Commission for Colleges of Education, the Committee of Vice Chancellors, the Committee of Rectors, the Committee of Provosts, the National Library, and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission.
According to Galadima, the strength of the new policy lies in its ability to link decentralised institutional databases into a federated system, while preserving institutional autonomy. She noted that fake certificates had thrived largely because of weak verification processes that were sometimes compromised.
“This reform is jointly owned by all tertiary institutions and regulatory agencies,” she said. “It provides a one-stop platform that ensures every academic credential is both authentic and digitally traceable.”
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