Orders FG compulsory verification of academic credentials between false widespread – Thage

By Victor Osula, Abuja

The Federal Government has directed all the ministries, the departments, the agencies (MDA), the military and paramilitary formations to enforce the mandatory verification of all the academic credentials of the staff members starting from 6 October 2025.

The directive follows the growing concerns of academics on the erosion of educational integrity and on the spread of false certificates across the country.

In response, the government has ordered the national implementation of national policy for Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (Nerd).

Politics requires every ministry, department, agency and institution, both public, private, civil or military. subject to staff and potential employees of rigorous check checks.

At the center of the reform is the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (Nerd), a centralized digital platform created to archive, manage, keep and verify the educational registers, publications and credentials from all levels of the system.

Designed as a unique hub for academic data, Nerd allows instantaneous authentication of certificates, at the same time as a permanent archive for historical academic results.

According to a circular of 8 August 2025 (ref: 58524/111c/579), signed by the secretary of the Federation, Senator George Akume (Con), every ministry, department, agency and tertiary institution of personnel and institution of breeding and civil assistance, as well as military, public or private military, must now adopt the national verification service (NCVS) for employees and staff.

Based on the new system, no appointment will be confirmed without an NCV instant authorization which certifies the authenticity of academic documents. Each authorization will generate a number of national credentials (NCN) and unique security codes connected to documents verified for the keeping of the registers.

This marks a deviation from the old system according to the issuing institutions, replacing it with a guarantee framework of the centralized quality that works independently of individual schools or sensitive officials.

According to the executive director of Nerd, Haula Galadima, “from 6 October, the fake titles and the honors not acquired will no longer slide through the cracks. Each credential must be verified to the click of a button.”

The directive draws its legal authority from section 10 (1) of the education law (National Minimard Standards and Institution of Institutions), 1985, which protects academic standards and integrity. The application will be supervised by the new constitution nerd, an organ recommended by the National University Commission (NUC) in May 2023.

According to the circular, all ministries, departments, agencies and high institutions throughout Nigeria – be they civil, military, private or public are aimed at presenting annual relationships on nerd compliance by 30 March of each year.

According to a report from 2022 Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), Nigeria has about 720,000 federal public employees.

The NCVS, a milestone of the Nerd program, was unveiled for the first time in March 2025 by the Minister of Education, dr. Tunji Alausa, following an approval of the Federal Executive Council.

Analysts say that politics could lead to widespread working losses, in particular in public service, in private schools and in tertiary institutions. The officials, however, argue that the reform is essential to restore credibility to the educational sector of Nigeria and safeguard future generations.