RismadarVoice Reporters
October 1, 2026
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has directed the Nigerian Tertiary Education Ranking Advisory Committee, NiTERAC, to commence the 2026 national ranking of universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across Nigeria.
The exercise, chaired by Professor Peter Okebukola, is expected to provide a national framework for assessing the performance of tertiary institutions, identifying areas requiring improvement and encouraging healthy competition.
Okebukola disclosed details of the exercise in a presentation on Nigeria’s performance in the 2027 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.
“As directed by the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, the Nigerian Tertiary Education Ranking Advisory Committee has started the process of the 2026 ranking of Nigerian universities, polytechnics and colleges of education,” Okebukola said.
He said the university component of the exercise would use 22 indicators, with the weightings agreed with the League of Directors of Academic Planning.
The rankings covering universities, polytechnics and colleges of education are scheduled to be completed before December 15, 2026.
According to Okebukola, the national exercise is intended to stimulate healthy competition among Nigerian tertiary institutions and strengthen the country’s performance in future international rankings.
The development comes as Nigeria recorded increased representation in the 2027 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, with 29 universities appearing in the ranked category compared with 24 in the previous edition.
Nigeria consequently recorded the highest number of ranked universities in sub-Saharan Africa.
Covenant University, the University of Ibadan and the University of Lagos were placed in the 801–1000 global ranking band, making them the highest-placed Nigerian institutions in the latest edition.
Ahmadu Bello University, Bayero University, Landmark University and the University of Ilorin were placed in the 1001–1200 band.
Another 32 Nigerian universities were classified as Reporter institutions after submitting data but not satisfying all the requirements for inclusion in the ranked table.
Okebukola said Nigerian universities still needed to improve in areas including global academic reputation, research output, doctoral programmes, international collaboration and institutional data management.
The national ranking represents a broader approach to assessing Nigeria’s tertiary education system because it extends beyond universities to polytechnics and colleges of education.
The three categories have different institutional mandates, with universities placing greater emphasis on research and postgraduate education, polytechnics focusing on technical and applied skills, and colleges of education playing a major role in teacher preparation.
The Federal Government expects the exercise to provide institutions with clearer domestic benchmarks for identifying performance gaps and improving their competitiveness.
