The federal government has banned individuals who hold honorary doctorate degrees from using the prefix "Dr" before their names. Minister of Education Tunji Alausa announced the policy on Wednesday in Abuja, stating it applies to all official, academic, and professional contexts. He said misuse of the title by honorary recipients amounts to academic fraud and will carry legal and reputational consequences. The policy stems from two Federal Executive Council approvals dated April 30 that were not disclosed at the last cabinet meeting. Alausa explained the move aims to stop decades of honorary degrees being awarded for political patronage and financial gain. Recipients must now use the full honorary designation after their name, such as "Chief Louis Clark, D.Lit. (Doctor of Literature, Honoris Causa)" or "Mrs Miriam Adamu, LL.D. Hons." The government will restrict honorary degrees to four types: Doctor of Laws (LL.D), Doctor of Letters (D.Lit), Doctor of Science (D.Sc), and Doctor of Humanities (D.Arts). Universities without active PhD-awarding programmes are barred from conferring any honorary degrees. The National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Federal Ministry of Education will issue a circular to all universities, and convocation programmes will be monitored for compliance. The ministry will also publish a list of legitimate honorary degree recipients. Alausa noted the NUC has statutory authority to enforce the policy. He was joined at the briefing by Minister of State for Education Suwaiba Ahmad.
Tunji Alausa claims the government is cracking down on academic fraud while allowing honorary degree recipients to still use post-nominal letters like D.Lit. or LL.D. This creates a loophole where public figures can retain elite academic branding despite the ban on the "Dr" prefix. Nigerians may continue to be misled, especially when media outlets highlight the honorary titles without clarifying their non-academic status. The policy's effectiveness hinges on consistent enforcement and public awareness, neither of which have been demonstrated before.
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