SOJWORLDNEWS|ASUU strike 2026
ASUU strike — The Academic Staff Union of Universities has shut down academic activities at five state-owned universities this week. Branch leaders say state governments have failed to implement the December 2025 agreement between ASUU and the Federal Government. Students now face fresh disruption just months after resuming classes.
ASUU signed the landmark agreement with the Federal Government on December 23, 2025, after more than sixteen years of on-and-off negotiations. The deal promised a 40 percent increase in academic staff pay, effective January 1, 2026. It also created a new allowance to cover journal publications, learned-society memberships, conferences, internet access and books. The Federal Government confirmed in February that it had started paying the new salaries. But branch leaders say state governments have moved far slower, and some have not moved at all.
Imo State University became the first flashpoint. ASUU’s IMSU branch declared a total and indefinite strike on August 10, citing unpaid salaries, promotion arrears and other unmet entitlements. Branch chairperson Stephen Oguji and secretary Lazarus Chikwendu signed the strike notice. They said the union had engaged the university management repeatedly before pulling the trigger. “ASUU-IMSU has therefore today, 10th August, 2026 embarked on a total and indefinite strike and vows never to return to work until the agreement is fully implemented,” the branch said in its statement. The union recalled that it suspended a similar strike in 2024 after management promised action that never fully materialized.
Nasarawa State University’s Keffi branch walked out the same day. Branch chairperson Zubairu Loko announced the decision after a union meeting, pointing to unresolved local issues on top of the national agreement dispute. The branch said continued talks without real implementation could no longer produce results.
Abia State University’s Uturu branch joined the action on August 11. Chairperson Chidi Mba and secretary Victor Obisike signed the notice directing members to fully withdraw services. They tied the walkout to the same demand: full implementation of the 2025 federal agreement.
Two Ondo State universities followed on August 12. Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology in Okitipupa and Adekunle Ajasin University in Akungba-Akoko both began indefinite strikes. OAUSTECH’s ASUU chairman, Dr. Oluwatoyin Ogunbamike, confirmed the walkout and called it total, comprehensive and indefinite until the Ondo State government implements the agreement.
Not every state has stalled. ASUU says implementation has already started at institutions in Bauchi, Ekiti, Ogun, Osun and Sokoto states, which suggests the dispute is hitting specific state governments rather than the agreement itself.
ASUU’s national leadership has also raised the stakes nationwide. The union authorized twenty university branches to issue fourteen-day ultimatums over outstanding parts of the agreement, a move that signals more strikes could follow if state and federal authorities don’t act quickly.
The National Association of Nigerian Students has urged governors not to let the dispute spiral into another lost semester. NANS President Akinteye Babatunde Afeez acknowledged that ASUU members have a right to demand what they’re owed, but he asked the union to direct its pressure at governments rather than students. He warned that Nigerian students have already endured repeated disruptions, delayed graduations and real psychological strain from past strikes.
For now, the affected schools are:
- Imo State University (IMSU)
- Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK)
- Abia State University, Uturu (ABSU)
- Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, Okitipupa (OAUSTECH)
- Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA)
Students, parents and staff at other state universities will be watching closely. With ultimatums already running at twenty more branches, the list above may not stay the same for long.
SOJWORLDNEWS|ASUU strike 2026
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