Tinubu Makes NERD Policy Mandatory for NYSC Mobilisation, Introduces Royalties for Scholars
President Bola Tinubu has approved a new directive making compliance with the National Policy for the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD) a compulsory requirement for all graduates seeking to participate in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
Effective October 6, 2024, no Nigerian graduate—whether from a domestic university, polytechnic, college of education, or an overseas institution—will be mobilised or granted an exemption from the NYSC without providing proof of NERD compliance. The directive was formalized in a circular issued to all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume.
This new rule, however, will not be applied retroactively and does not affect corps members currently serving or those who were enrolled before the enforcement date.
Boosting Quality and Authenticity
The NERD policy mandates that all students deposit their academic outputs, including final year project reports and theses, into a national digital repository. According to the government, this serves a dual purpose: it acts as a quality assurance check and provides an immutable, time-stamped record of academic scholarship and enrolment.
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While announcing the policy’s effectiveness in March 2024, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, clarified that the policy applies equally to all educational institutions, including private, public, military, and specialized colleges like those of Nursing and Agriculture, regardless of their supervisory ministry.
Monetising Academic Work
In a groundbreaking incentive, President Tinubu also approved an academic output monetisation and reward mechanism. Proposed by the Minister of Education, this scheme will allow both students and their lecturers to earn lifetime royalties from their deposited academic work.
The policy encourages each higher institution to establish its own local repository, creating a unified national framework for academic data that connects institutions that have traditionally operated in isolation.
Strengthening Supervision Through Transparency
Underscoring the significance of the directive, the spokesperson for NERD, Haula Galadima, explained that the platform is designed to raise the quality of academic output nationwide.
“Each item deposited by a student shall feature the full name of the student, their supervisor, co-supervisor, and Head of Department,” Galadima stated. “If our eminent scholars are aware that their names will appear next to those of the students they supervise on a globally available digital platform, there is the likelihood that each lecturer would up his or her standard. Very few lecturers would want their names associated with poorly produced academic works.”
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To ensure seamless implementation, critical data bodies like the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) have been directed to provide data exchange support for validation purposes. Onboarding for MDAs and institutions is to be conducted through the official NERD portal.
