The Federal Government on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, formally unveiled its 2026 agreements with the unions representing academic and non-teaching staff in universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, and Education Minister Dr Tunji Alausa used the event in Abuja to repeat President Bola Tinubu’s campaign promise that “a four-year course would be completed in four years.” The agreements cover ASUP and COEASU on the academic side and non-teaching unions including SSANU, NASU and NAAT.
For students, the timing is what makes this worth watching. SSANU’s 14-day strike notice, issued after its National Executive Council met at the University of Uyo at the start of October, runs out around October 19, and the union told the government at Tuesday’s event that two months of salaries withheld in 2022 and a year of arrears from earlier 25% and 35% pay rises are still unpaid. A university-wide walkout by non-teaching staff would shut libraries, labs, hostels and registry offices even where lecturers are still teaching.
A promise made, a promise kept, and trust restored.
New allowances run from January, and the money has started moving
At the heart of the deals are two allowances backdated to January 1, 2026. The Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance (CATA) covers members of ASUP in polytechnics and COEASU in colleges of education, while the Consolidated Non-Teaching Tools Allowance (CONTTA) covers eligible non-teaching staff across all three types of institution. Alausa said the government would “fulfil our own part of these historic agreements”, and urged union leaders to settle disagreements through dialogue instead of threatening strikes in the media.
Some of the money has already landed. ASUP said its members received arrears between July and September, and COEASU said more than 70% of its agreement has been implemented. SSANU confirmed in early October that funds for eight months of CONTTA arrears had been released, less than 48 hours after its ultimatum became public, which is why many students expected the strike threat to fade.
- New allowances take effectCATA and CONTTA, paid as arrears
- ASUP agreement signedApril 2026Talks began December 2025
- SSANU agreement signed
- SSANU NEC issues 14-day noticeEarly October 2026After its meeting at the University of Uyo
- FG unveils 2026 agreementsAbuja
- SSANU strike notice expiresUnion says some arrears remain unpaid
Dates are from statements made by the unions and the Federal Ministry of Education. SSANU's deadline is approximate, based on its 14-day notice.
Why the strike threat hasn’t gone away for university students
The eight months of arrears paid this month settle only part of SSANU’s list. Its outstanding demands are the two months’ salaries withheld during the 2022 industrial action and one year of arrears from the 25% and 35% increases, and the union also wants state governments to apply the agreement in state-owned universities. SSANU hasn’t publicly withdrawn its notice, and the chairman of the government’s negotiating committee, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, appealed for patience on Tuesday while warning against threats of indefinite strikes over payments still being processed.
Ahmed also said the committee had found discrepancies in parts of the agreements, which the ministry and the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission have agreed to review. Until that’s settled and the remaining arrears are paid, a non-teaching strike remains possible, and state universities already have their own disputes running, as the indefinite ASUU strike at Taraba State University shows.
A single committee will now police every union deal
The ministry is expanding the existing ASUU Implementation and Monitoring Committee into one body that will track the agreements with all academic and non-academic unions, and the government says it intends to make it permanent. The agreements carry a review clause every three years, so pay and conditions should come up for renegotiation on a schedule instead of only after a strike forces the issue. That’s the mechanism behind Alausa’s promise, since the long gaps between renegotiations were what let disputes pile up and close campuses for months.
If you’re in a federal university, keep an eye on your school’s official channels and SSANU branch notices over the next week, because that’s where any directive to withdraw services would first appear. Polytechnic and college of education students are in a steadier position, given ASUP and COEASU are both reporting payments. Whatever happens, a strike doesn’t pause the NELFUND 2026/2027 loan application, which stays open until December 31, and the recent end of the LASU strike shows these disputes can close quickly once arrears are paid on a clear timetable.
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