Education minister rolls out technology-driven reforms to curb academic fraud

The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has announced the rollout of the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD) programme, a $68.8 million technology-driven initiative aimed at eliminating substandard academic reports, fake certificates, and unearned honours in Nigeria’s education sector.

Alausa, in a statement following the Federal Executive Council’s (FEC) approval of the programme, said NERD is designed to enhance academic integrity, security, and national planning through digitization and verification mechanisms.

The NERD programme, fully financed by the private sector, is a national technology tool jointly owned by all post-secondary and tertiary institutions in Nigeria alongside regulatory bodies, including:

National Universities Commission (NUC), National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), National Library of Nigeria

Alausa stated that NERD will be applicable across all higher education institutions, regardless of ownership—public, private, civilian, or military—as well as professional schools like nursing and agriculture colleges.

Each student’s final academic report must be deposited into a central national database after undergoing a mandatory anti-plagiarism check.

A National Credential Number (NCN) and a frame QR code will be affixed to all certificates, diplomas, and transcripts, making them instantly verifiable.

Fake degrees and phony academic qualifications will be eradicated, as the NCVS will serve as a systemic quality assurance check.

All admitted students post-JAMB will be required to register in the National Students’ Clearing House under the NERD system.