No NERD, No NYSC — FG Announces New Rule

The Federal Government has made compliance with the Nigeria Education Repository and Data Bank (NERD) compulsory for participation in or exemption from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), tightening efforts to end certificate fraud.

Minister of Education, Maruf Alausa, announced the directive at a national programme on academic records integrity, describing NERD as a digital platform created to standardise and authenticate credentials across tertiary institutions.

“It is important to clarify that while NERD compliance is now a prerequisite for participation in, or exemption from, the National Youth Service Corps, enforcement extends far beyond NYSC,” he said.

He added that agencies such as the National Universities Commission, National Board for Technical Education, National Commission for Colleges of Education, TETFund, and the Industrial Training Fund will require compliance before offering services.

Within four months, nearly 100,000 student records have been digitised, with over 250 institutions onboarded and more than 133,000 students enrolled.

Alausa also revealed that the government halted the trend of Nigerians acquiring fake degrees from unaccredited institutions abroad, especially in the Republic of Benin.

“Before President Tinubu came into government, there was a whistleblower who reported about Nigerians going to the Republic of Benin to study… That has been put to a complete stop. And all of those people that got those illegal certificates have all been thrown out of our civil service, public service.”

He vowed strict enforcement to eliminate credential falsification and safeguard the integrity of Nigeria’s education system.