ASUU Strike: Nigeria Women Task Stakeholders And Academic Union

ASUU Strike: Nigerian women tasks stakeholders and academic union

A society of Nigerian women has called on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and educational stakeholders in the country to safeguard the future of Nigerian students and quicken their educational growth by going back to the classroom following the two months strike embarked on by the union.

Speaking at the council’s convention in Abuja, the president of the National Council for Women Societies, Lami Adamu, said the strike which occured as a result of inability of the Federal Government to meet the demands of ASUU has put the education of Nigerian students in danger and urged the educational stakeholders in the country to find a way to resolve the problem.

“The Academic Staff Union of Universities is on strike and our universities are shut down with our children’s academic future again clearly endangered, even jeopardised”.

“At the heart of this strike debacle is the funding of higher education and the role of government. The primary reason for this contradiction is that Nigeria currently spends more than four times on higher education than it spends on basic education”.

Adamu also noted that the demand by ASUU does not cover the need for research in higher institutions that could move the society forward and it is still a sad issue in the Nigerian educational sector.

“But despite this funding, it has remained insufficient and ineffective, so much that
between 90 – 95 percent of budget allocation to tertiary institutions are spent on personnel costs”.

“There is, therefore, hardly anything left for research and innovation, which should be the fundamental reason for tertiary education. There must be a reasoned evolution of a common ground to save our children’s future and our tertiary education. This will enable us to compete with the rest of the world. Both the government and ASUU must therefore resume genuine dialogue”. she said.

Also speaking at the convention, guest lecturer, Nafisa Zaki emphasized on the importance of education to women development while stating that it is the safety of Nigeria women that would promote peaceful engagement and security within and outside the country