NAUTH nursing students protest tuition hike from N90,000 to N580,000; management pledges discussions with board and student leaders to resolve concerns

Students of the School of Nursing, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH) in Nnewi, Anambra State, protested on Tuesday against a sharp increase in tuition fees, prompting management to promise engagement with stakeholders to address concerns.

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The students marched within the school premises, carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, including, “We no go gree, reduce the school fees, we no go gree,” decrying the hike from N90,000 to N580,000.

The fee increment followed a January 23 memo issued by O.I. Ezejiofor, Chairman of the Board and Chief Medical Advisory Committee of NAUTH College of Nursing, announcing the upward review to support institutional improvements.

Speaking to journalists, Chief Medical Director of NAUTH, Prof. Joseph Ugboaja, acknowledged the protest and pledged discussions with both the board and student union leadership.

“I will return to the institution and we will sit with members of the board who proposed the new tuition and also with the student union leadership to sort things out,” Prof. Ugboaja said.

He explained that the increment was intended to sustain academic standards and that NAUTH’s tuition had remained among the lowest in the South-East. “Someone who was paying N90,000 would naturally protest the increase, but it is to ensure we maintain standards,” he added.

Addressing concerns about accommodation, Prof. Ugboaja noted that the school does not own hostels and that housing arrangements are handled privately between students and hostel owners.

Meanwhile, NAUTH Public Relations Officer Chinyere Onwuka stated that the students’ union leadership had distanced itself from the protest. “They wrote to us and I have the letter here. I don’t know those who organised or led the protest,” she said.

On the revised fees, Onwuka said the tuition covers feeding and transportation for clinical postings, including trips to Enugu, and remains moderate compared with other schools of nursing in the South-East.

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“Some institutions charge as much as N800,000 for old students, and that is even without feeding,” she added.