Experts have called on the Nigerian government and higher education regulators to develop a robust national AI policy for universities, warning that the lack of clear guidelines could undermine the integrity and competitiveness of the country’s education system.
The push for a formal framework comes as artificial intelligence tools such as generative AI, automated essay graders, and chatbots become increasingly common in Nigerian lecture halls and research labs.
Education stakeholders say a well-defined policy is urgently needed to govern how AI is integrated into teaching, research, and administration. Concerns include plagiarism, student data privacy, research ethics, and the risk of academic fraud if AI systems are misused.
Professor Joseph Olanrewaju, an AI governance advocate at the University of Ibadan, noted that Nigerian institutions must act proactively to avoid a crisis of credibility. “It’s only a matter of time before generative AI fundamentally changes how students learn and how faculty assess them,” he said. “If we don’t build clear standards now, we risk harming the reputation of our degrees and our graduates.”
Other experts have recommended that the National Universities Commission (NUC) work with stakeholders to develop guidelines for safe and ethical use of AI, similar to policies already emerging in Europe and North America.
They also urged universities to build staff capacity and digital infrastructure that can responsibly deploy AI tools, while maintaining human oversight and academic rigor.
Nigeria currently has no national AI policy tailored for the education sector, despite the federal government’s broader push to grow the country’s AI capabilities under its National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS).
