THE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Akure Zone, has called on the Ondo State Government to fully implement the 2025 agreement reached between the Federal Government and ASUU in all state-owned tertiary institutions.
Addressing journalists at the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo, the Zonal Coordinator, Dr. Adeola Egbedokun, expressed concern that six months after the agreement took effect, the state had yet to adopt its financial provisions.
He warned that the delay was negatively affecting lecturers’ welfare and the quality of higher education.
Egbedokun explained that the agreement, signed on December 23, 2025, and effective from January 1, 2026, introduced improved welfare packages, including the Consolidated Academic and Research Allowance (CARA), Earned Academic Allowance (EAA), and Professorial Allowance.
He noted that ASUU agreed to forgo more than ₦100 billion in accumulated Earned Academic Allowance arrears on the condition that the allowance would be integrated into lecturers’ monthly salaries at 10 per cent of their basic pay.
According to him, the agreement was designed to improve staff welfare, promote research productivity, and strengthen the quality of university education.
The union argued that Ondo State, being a major oil-producing state and a beneficiary of the 13 per cent derivation fund, has the financial capacity to implement the agreement.
It also criticised the state government for setting up a committee to review the pact, insisting that representatives of state-owned universities were already involved in the negotiations that produced the agreement.
ASUU warned that if the government continues to delay implementation, the union may resort to lawful trade union actions to press its demands.
Responding to the concerns, the Ondo State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, said the government had already begun the process of implementing the agreement.
He added that Ondo is not the only state yet to domesticate the Federal Government-ASUU pact, noting that most states within the ASUU Akure Zone are still working towards its adoption.
Ajibefun assured lecturers that the state government remains committed to implementing the agreement and has taken proactive steps to ensure its eventual execution.
