The Nigerian Federal Government has decided to fire workers in both public and private sectors who used fake degrees from schools in the Benin Republic and Togo to get jobs. This decision came after a proposal from the Ministry of Education, which worked with other ministries on this issue.
Education Minister Tahir Mamman announced that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation will issue a notice to all employers, telling them to find and dismiss anyone using certificates from these unrecognized institutions. The Head of Service is also directed to find such people within the public sector.
This action follows a report by the Daily Nigerian in December 2023, which found that a reporter got a degree from Ecole Superieure de Gestion et de Technologies in Cotonou, Benin Republic, in less than two months and then was able to join the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The Federal Government, along with the Ministry of Education and other agencies, has been looking into degrees issued by schools in Benin Republic and Togo. After the investigation, the government decided to cancel more than 22,000 fake certificates from these countries that are currently being used by Nigerians. This decision was part of the recommendations from a committee set up to tackle this issue.
Minister Mamman stated that these fake degrees have let people unfairly compete with those who earned their qualifications through genuine efforts over many years. He stressed that this practice is unfair to hardworking graduates.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved removing more than 21,684 students with fake certificates from the Benin Republic and 1,105 from Togo, based on NYSC data from 2019 to 2023. The Minister pointed out that many of these schools are not even recognized in their own countries, and some parents knowingly send their children to these unapproved institutions.
Only a few universities in Togo and Benin are officially allowed to offer degrees, and the Nigerian government will not accept qualifications from schools that are not recognized in their home countries. The Minister also noted that many people with fake certificates have avoided the NYSC screening process or disappeared to avoid getting caught.
The government has taken a strong position on this matter to protect the quality of Nigeria’s educational system and make sure that only valid qualifications are accepted.
