Baze University, a private institution in Abuja, Nigeria, has announced a significant hike in student fees, attributing the increase to a substantial surge in the expenses associated with goods and services. The adjustments encompass a doubling of hostel fees, a 35% uptick in tuition, as well as increments in Students’ Industrial Working Experience Scheme (SIWES) and laundry charges.
The notification of the fee adjustments was relayed to students via an internal memorandum issued by Kehinde Adekeye, the Deputy Registrar and Acting Dean of Students at the university. Adekeye emphasized that the new fee structure would take effect from May.
According to Adekeye’s memo, the decision to revise the fees was grounded in several factors, including the steep rise in the cost of goods and services, the necessity to offer competitive salaries and benefits, adherence to government regulations and accreditation standards, and the prevailing economic downturn. These adjustments were reportedly sanctioned by the University Governing Council.
Prior to the increment, hostel fees ranged from N800,000 to N1.2 million per session. However, as outlined in the memo, this has now been doubled. Similarly, tuition fees, which were previously approximately N3 million per academic session, have been raised by 35%. Medical students, who formerly paid up to N5 million annually from their second to fourth years and N9 million in the fifth year, will also face increased fees.
This move mirrors a trend observed in public universities, where fee hikes became prevalent last year, despite the Nigerian government’s stance that federal government-run institutions remain tuition-free. Public university administrators have justified these increases by citing the rising costs associated with maintaining institutional infrastructure.
President Bola Tinubu’s pledge to establish a student loan program has yet to materialize, despite multiple assurances.
Last year, shortly after taking office, Tinubu signed the Higher Education Access Act, which aimed to establish an Education Bank to provide loans for Nigerian students facing financial constraints. However, the government has missed three proposed launch dates for the initiative within a year. The bill has recently been returned to the National Assembly for review, with a new version already passed but awaiting the President’s assent.
