The Kaduna State Government has approved N300 million as Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) for lecturers of Kaduna State University (KASU) as part of efforts to address outstanding staff welfare concerns and prevent industrial action.
The government also constituted a nine-member committee to negotiate with the Academic Staff Union of Universities, KASU chapter, and other staff unions over their outstanding demands.
The development follows renewed concerns over welfare, working conditions and other unresolved issues at the university after ASUU-KASU issued a two-week ultimatum to the state government and university management.
The union, however, has maintained that it prefers dialogue and is ready to negotiate with the government.
In a statement on Monday, the Secretary to the Kaduna State Government, Dr Abdulkadir Meyere, said the committee would comprehensively review the demands of ASUU, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, the Non-Academic Staff Union and the National Association of Academic Technologists.
He said the N300 million EAA payment was part of the government’s efforts to address accumulated entitlements and improve staff welfare at KASU.
According to Meyere, the payment continues the Governor Uba Sani administration’s efforts to clear a backlog of more than N800 million in accumulated entitlements and allowances dating back to 2016.
He added that the government had settled outstanding withheld salaries and released funds to clear arrears of Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme supervision allowances.
The government has also established a N50 million monthly standing order for the systematic settlement of outstanding arrears and staff-related claims.
Meyere disclosed that the administration had spent more than N300 million on the accreditation of academic programmes and resource verification exercises for postgraduate programmes.
The nine-member committee is chaired by the Commissioner for Education, Prof Abubakar Sambo. Its members include the commissioners for Business, Innovation and Technology and Youth; the Chairman of the Local Government Service Board; the Director-General of the Kaduna State Schools Quality Assurance Authority; the KASU Vice-Chancellor, Prof Abdullahi Ibrahim Musa; and the Pro-Chancellor, Dr Ibrahim Umar.
The Permanent Secretary, General Services, Office of the Secretary to the State Government, is also a member, while the Permanent Secretary, Establishments, Services and Training, will serve as secretary.
The committee has four weeks to conclude its assignment and submit its recommendations to the state government.
It is expected to examine the unions’ demands, including the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance, compare KASU’s conditions with those of other state-owned universities and determine the financial implications of implementing demands arising from the 2025 ASUU-Federal Government agreement.
The government said the panel would recommend practical, equitable and financially sustainable solutions to the outstanding issues.
Meyere urged the unions to embrace dialogue, negotiation and collective bargaining rather than industrial action, which he said could disrupt the academic calendar and affect students and their families.
The development comes after ASUU-KASU raised concerns over outstanding allowances and other conditions of service at the university.
The union had also expressed concern over the departure of academic staff from KASU, although the state government disputed claims that more than 200 lecturers had left because of poor working conditions.
According to the government, available records showed that 59 academic staff left KASU between January 2024 and August 2026, including professors and associate professors.
It also said more than N896 million had been spent on staff welfare at the university.
Despite the dispute, ASUU-KASU chairman, Dr Abubakar Abdullahi, has repeatedly said the union does not want to shut down the university and remains willing to negotiate.
The latest measures by the Kaduna State Government therefore open a fresh avenue for resolving the union’s demands while keeping academic activities at KASU uninterrupted.
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