Photo: News Central TV
The Federal Government has dismissed viral claims that the National Universities Commission (NUC) identified 2,000 fake universities in Nigeria and uncovered about 100 fake professors, describing the reports as false and misleading.
The Federal Ministry of Education issued the denial on Saturday, November 14, in a statement by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade, for Education Minister Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa.
- The NUC "has never declared the existence of 2,000 fake universities in Nigeria", the ministry says
- The commission has not published, endorsed or authenticated the fake-professors list circulating online
- Nigeria has 328 recognised universities on the NUC's own listing: 77 federal, 69 state and 182 private
Where the fake professors claim actually came from
According to the ministry, the allegation is a distorted version of a media report published on December 3, 2019, about an NUC exercise to verify the directory of full professors in Nigerian universities.
The original report did not contain the names now being circulated, and the commission has since disowned the list attached to it.
The ministry described the recycled claims as misinformation intended to mislead the public and discredit the nation's university system.
Why the NUC denial matters
Lists naming alleged fake professors can damage real academics' reputations, which is why the ministry stressed that no such list carries the NUC's authority.
The commission's own 2019 verification exercise was concluded that year, and a 2024 NUC bulletin already rejected an earlier recirculation of the same claim.
What happens next
The ministry is urging the public to treat the circulating lists as unauthenticated and to rely on the NUC's official directory of recognised universities and professors.
Anyone sharing the list should note: the government says it is recycled, distorted and disowned.
Credit: Federal Ministry of Education statement, November 14, 2026, reported by News Central TV.
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