Tinubu Links NYSC Service to National Digital Repository (NERD).
The National Education Repository and Databank (NERD) is a national digital platform established by the Nigerian Federal Government to store and manage academic works (projects, theses, final-year research) produced by Nigerian students and researchers.
Its core purpose is to serve as a quality assurance check and a mandatory, independent proof that a graduate actually attended school, completed their work, and graduated.
The platform is now mandatory for NYSC mobilization or obtaining an exemption letter for all Nigerian graduates from October 6, 2025.
Key Features and Objectives of NERD 🇳🇬
Core Mandate: Quality Assurance and Verification
Digital Repository: NERD is a central digital archive for academic outputs from all types of Nigerian educational institutions (universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, military schools, etc.), both local and overseas.
NYSC Requirement: From October 6, 2025, proof of compliance with NERD—meaning uploading one’s final-year academic work—is an obligatory requirement for all Nigerian graduates seeking to join the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) or receive an exemption letter.
Proof of Graduation: The submission acts as a “yearly independent proof of continuous academic enrolment and affiliation” and is designed to “inviolably time-stamp scholarship” to confirm a student’s academic journey and graduation.
Raising Academic Standards
Strengthening Supervision: By requiring that each submission carry the names of the student, supervisor, co-supervisor, and Head of Department, NERD aims to indirectly strengthen supervision processes in higher institutions.
Incentive for Quality: The knowledge that their names will be publicly associated with student work on a “globally accessible platform” is intended to motivate lecturers to raise their standard of supervision and ensure the quality of academic content and presentation is high.
Monetisation and Reward Mechanism
Lifetime Revenue: A unique feature approved by President Tinubu is a monetisation and reward mechanism. This policy allows students and lecturers to earn lifetime revenue from the academic works they deposit in the repository, providing a financial incentive for scholarly contribution.
Technical and Policy Implementation
Institutional Repositories: The policy encourages each higher institution to establish its own local repository, which must then be linked into the national NERD database.
Inter-Agency Support: Key data management bodies, such as the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), are directed to provide inter-agency data exchange support via Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). This ensures smooth onboarding and verification of student and institutional data.
Policy Enforcement: The NERD Policy, formally declared effective in March 2025 by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, applies equally to all education delivery institutions, regardless of ownership (public, private, military, or civilian).
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