27. August 2025
Admin
UNILAG Sees Mass Exodus of Academic Staff Amid Poor Pay and Currency Crisis
Claims that "239 First-Class Lecturers" left the University of Lagos over poor pay have circulated online—but UNILAG’s Vice Chancellor attributes the broader academic brain drain to low pay exacerbated by the naira’s devaluation, prompting many lecturers to seek opportunities abroad.
([Daily Trust](https://dailytrust.com/weak-naira-impoverished-lecturers-led-to-mass-exodus-unilag-vc/): VC Ogunsola)
Quick Insight: Over the past five years, approximately 1,800 UNILAG lecturers—nearly 60% of the academic workforce—have resigned due to poor remunerations and economic instability.
([The Campulse](https://thecampulse.com/mass-exodus-of-lecturers-hits-unilag-as-over-1800-exit-in-five-years/))
What's Behind the Exodus?
- Currency Collapse: The weakened naira rendered already low salaries almost untenable, triggering a “tsunami of exit.” Lecturers who stayed did so more out of patriotism than satisfaction.
([Daily Trust](https://dailytrust.com/weak-naira-impoverished-lecturers-led-to-mass-exodus-unilag-vc/))
- Staff Loss Scale: UNILAG lost about 1,800 academic staff in five years, intensifying the strain on teaching and research capacity.
([The Campulse](https://thecampulse.com/mass-exodus-of-lecturers-hits-unilag-as-over-1800-exit-in-five-years/))
- Impact on Learning: With just roughly 1,200 lecturers remaining, workload per academic ballooned—student-to-lecturer ratios surged dramatically.
([ATQ News](https://atqnews.com/news-unilag-loses-1800-lecturers-in-five-years-as-tinubu-approves-67-new-tertiary-institutions/))
What the Numbers Show
- No confirmed "239 First-Class Lecturers" data point—no public record validates this figure specifically tied to high-ranking academic ranks.
- The broader trends—mass staff resignation and naira-related impoverishment—are corroborated by university leadership and independent reporting.
Key Takeaways
- The UNILAG academic exodus reflects deep structural issues: poor remuneration, harsh economic conditions, and insecure career futures.
- More accurate framing focuses on the massive loss of academic staff over time—not limited counts or titles.
- Unless working conditions improve, Nigerian universities risk collapsing quality and stability, regardless of enrollment expansions.
([The Campulse](https://thecampulse.com/mass-exodus-of-lecturers-hits-unilag-as-over-1800-exit-in-five-years/))
Note: Monitoring accurate figures and university-level reporting is essential—claims about specific categories should be verified before use. The broader crisis, however, is undeniable.
