Over 50 lecturers across Nigerian public tertiary institutions have been indicted for sexual misconduct between April 2021 and April 2025.
Some of the indicted academics, including professors, have been sacked, while others are facing disciplinary hearings.
The allegations involve universities and polytechnics across Nigeria, demonstrating the prevalence of sexual harassment in the country’s higher education system.
According to a 2018 poll conducted by the World Bank Group’s Women, Business, and the Law project, 70% of female graduates in Nigeria have experienced sexual harassment in school, with classmates and professors being the most prevalent targets.
Despite the Senate passing a bill in 2021 mandating a 21-year prison sentence for lecturers accused of sexual exploitation, the legislation has yet to be enacted into law.
Most recently, on April 24, 2025, the Governing Council of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, terminated a senior lecturer, Dr Usman Aliyu, on claims of sexual harassment against a married postgraduate student, Mrs Kamila Aliyu.
The institution acted on the conclusions of its Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee, which found the instructor guilty of wrongdoing.
Mrs Aliyu petitioned the school in 2024, accusing Dr Aliyu of coercion and jeopardising her academic advancement.
Just ten days earlier, on April 14, 2025, the Lagos State University of Science and Technology fired three academics for sexual harassment: Mr. Nurudeen Hassan (Mass Communication), Mr. Kareem Arigbabu, and Mr. Olayinka Uthman (all from the Department of Arts & Design).
According to a memo titled “Dismissal of Staff Members Due to Sexual Harassment Allegations”, the decision was made following discussions by the institution’s Governing Council under Section 5.5.2(v) of the University Senior Staff Conditions of Service.
Similarly, on November 14, 2024, the Federal University in Lokoja announced the expulsion of four unknown instructors for sexual misconduct.
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Previously, on August 2, 2024, Abia State University, Uturu, banned Dr Udochukwu Ndukwe from the Department of Mass Communication for three months due to charges of harassing a female student.
In May 2024, FULokoja suspended another lecturer after similar claims. That same April, Enugu State Police arrested Mr Mfonobong Udoudom, a suspended lecturer at the University of Nigeria, after a video surfaced of him reportedly abusing a female student in his office. The university had previously declared his indefinite suspension.
Earlier cases include the 2021 expulsion of three academics from Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife—one from each of the Departments of English, International Relations, and Accounting—for sexual harassment.
In June 2021, the Federal University of Oye-Ekiti suspended a lecturer in the Department of Media and Theatre Arts for misbehaviour, while the University of Lagos fired two teachers in the same month for similar charges.
In August 2021, the University of Port Harcourt fired a lecturer from the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature. In October of the same year, the Federal Polytechnic in Bauchi terminated two lecturers from the Nutrition/Dietetics and General Studies departments.
The Ignatius Ajuru University of Education fired a lecturer in 2021 for impregnating a female student, while Kwara State University, Malete, fired a lecturer in December for harassing a student in the Department of Pure and Applied Sciences.
In January 2022, Rivers State’s Elechi Amadi Polytechnic adopted the same move.
Obafemi Awolowo University came under fire again in April 2022, when a probe was launched into sexual harassment charges against a professor in the Department of Linguistics and African Studies, bringing the total number of teachers affected at the institution to two.
In June 2022, Prof. Abdul-Raheed Na’allah, then-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, confirmed the firing of two lecturers for sexual misconduct.
In 2023, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) charged Dr Balogun Olaniran of Tai Solarin University of Education for soliciting sexual favours in exchange for manipulating a student’s scores.
In March 2023, Kogi State Polytechnic fired Abutu Thompson, a computer science lecturer, for harassing and victimising a female student.
In May, Ambrose Alli University in Edo State terminated a lecturer based on a disciplinary committee decision.
Despite admitting to making advances, the instructor went so far as to visit the student’s chapel to ask for forgiveness, according to Vice-Chancellor Prof. Asomwan Adagbonyin.
In July 2023, UNIABUJA announced the expulsion of two instructors for sexual misconduct.
The following month, the University of Calabar suspended Prof. Cyril Ndifon, Dean of the Faculty of Law, following several harassment complaints.
On September 7, 2023, the University of Lagos suspended lecturer Kadri Babalola after he was accused of raping a 21-year-old student.
Amid ongoing reports, Mr Onoja Baba, a lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at Kogi State Polytechnic, has advocated for a “Digital Anonymous Feedback System” to allow for safer reporting of such incidents.
“The existing mechanisms are often bureaucratic, and students fear repercussions, especially when it involves faculty,” he said. “Without trusted and effective channels, victims feel isolated. It’s time to rethink how we address reporting and accountability in our institutions.”
