The Nigerian government has banned the title ‘Dr’ for honorary degree holders, warning of academic fraud

The Federal Government has introduced a new policy prohibiting honorary degree recipients from using the title “Dr,” stating that use of the title constitutes a form of academic misrepresentation that will have legal and reputational consequences.

The announcement was made on Wednesday in Abuja by the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, during a briefing at the Presidential Villa following approval from the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

Alausa, who spoke to journalists alongside the Minister of Education, Suwaiba Ahmad, said the new directive sets out a uniform framework governing how honorary degrees are awarded and used across universities in Nigeria.

He explained that the policy aims to curb the long-standing abuse of honorary academic degrees and restore the credibility of the system.

He said, “The current trends we see in the awarding of honorary degrees have demonstrated the increasing abuse and politicization of this academic privilege.

“We have seen awards used for political patronage, for financial gain, as well as giving honors to serving public officials, which, as part of the ethics of awarding honorary degrees, should not happen.”

Under the new guidelines, honorary degree recipients are prohibited from adding the prefix “Dr” to their names in any formal context. Instead, they are required to reflect the honorary nature of the award by including the full designation after their name.

Giving examples, Alausa explained, “For example, you could use Chief Louis Clark, D.Lit.(Doctor of Literature, Honoris Causa)” or “Mrs Miriam Adamu, LL.D. Hons.”

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He emphasized that the revised format is intended to clearly distinguish recognition of honors from academic qualifications obtained.

“Recipients may not add the prefix doctor to their names in official, academic or professional use,” the minister said, adding, “Misrepresentation of an honorary degree as an earned academic credential will be considered academic fraud and subject to legal and reputational consequences.”

The policy also limits the categories of honorary degrees that universities in Nigeria can award to four recognized types: Doctor of Laws (LL.D), Doctor of Letters (D.Lit), Doctor of Science (D.Sc), and Doctor of Humanities (D.Arts).

Additionally, institutions that do not run active PhD programs are now prohibited from awarding honorary doctorates—a move aimed at limiting the spread of honorary doctorates among new universities that do not have graduate research capacity.

According to the Minister of Finance, all honorary awards must explicitly include the term “honorary” or “Honoris Causa” on the certificate and official references.

For years, the Nigerian academic world has grappled with concerns over the commercialization and politicization of honorary degrees, with accusations that some institutions award them based on financial influence or political considerations, rather than merit.

Previous attempts to address this issue through the Keffi Declaration by the Association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities failed due to lack of legal backing.

Alausa noted, “The Association has no legal backing to enforce anything.

“That’s why we took the matter to the Federal Executive Council, which is now providing legal and executive support.”

He disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the National Universities Commission (NUC), would issue compliance directives to universities across the country.

He added that calling ceremonies would be monitored to ensure compliance, while the government would also work with media organizations to prevent inappropriate use of academic degrees.

To further safeguard academic integrity, the ministry plans to publish an annual list of legitimate honorary degree recipients, and the NUC is authorized to enforce full compliance with the policy.