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House of Representatives of Nigeria calls for review of ban on certificates from Benin Republic and Togo.
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Lawmakers recommend case-by-case verification instead of general invalidation.
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Committee report presented by Laori Kwamoti during plenary.
The House of Representatives of Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to reverse its blanket invalidation of degree certificates obtained from institutions in Benin Republic and Togo.
The resolution followed the adoption of a report by the House Committee on Public Petitions during plenary on Wednesday.
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Presenting the report, the committee chairman, Laori Kwamoti, said the recommendation was based on a petition submitted by Sovereignty Legal Practitioners on behalf of stakeholders in the education sector.
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The petition challenged the Federal Government’s decision to invalidate degrees from the two West African countries over concerns about academic fraud.
Lawmakers said the blanket ban could unfairly affect graduates who legitimately obtained their qualifications from accredited institutions.
Instead, the House recommended that authorities adopt a case-by-case verification process to identify and address proven instances of certificate fraud.
The lawmakers also urged the Federal Ministry of Education to work with education authorities in Benin Republic and Togo to strengthen verification systems and improve the authentication of foreign academic certificates.
The Federal Government had in January 2024 suspended the accreditation and evaluation of degrees from the two countries after an undercover investigation exposed widespread certificate racketeering.