“Why Lecturers Aren’t Getting Paid” — AGF Blames Abrupt Payroll Shift

The Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, has attributed the current salary payment crisis in Nigeria’s federal tertiary institutions to a rushed and poorly coordinated switch from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS).

Speaking in Abuja on Monday during a one-day stakeholders’ meeting with vice chancellors, rectors, provosts, and regulatory agencies, Ogunjimi explained that the failure to follow technical transition guidelines disrupted salary disbursements, third-party deductions, and pension remittances—triggering widespread outrage within the education sector.

Since taking office in March 2025, Ogunjimi said his office has been bombarded with complaints from Pension Fund Administrators, State Internal Revenue Services, trade unions, and microcredit organizations over unpaid statutory deductions and delayed salaries.

To ensure a smooth transition, an Inter-ministerial Technical Committee had earlier been convened. The committee recommended that payroll for October 2024 be handled on the IPPIS platform while preparations for full migration to GIFMIS continue. It also set October 31, 2024, as the deadline for validating staff accounts and granting institutions access to personnel modules on GIFMIS.

Additionally, the committee advised trial runs of the November and December payrolls on IPPIS—though to be paid via GIFMIS—before fully switching over by the end of 2024. It also urged the federal government to clear outstanding liabilities such as salary arrears and promotion entitlements.

“Unfortunately, failure to prepare trial payrolls and the abrupt shift to GIFMIS in late 2024 significantly worsened the situation,” Ogunjimi noted.

To manage the fallout, he disclosed that his office has since conducted several meetings with stakeholders, including bursars, and approved a joint training initiative with the Association of Bursars of Nigerian Universities to guide institutions through the new system.

“Despite these efforts, I still receive a catalogue of complaints from institutions,” Ogunjimi lamented, adding that the stakeholders’ forum was convened to collectively resolve the lingering issues once and for all.