The Federal Government has released the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance (CATA) for academic staff in universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, covering the period from January to August 2026.
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Wednesday after inaugurating the Ministerial Committee on Accreditation.
Alausa said the allowance was designed to enable lecturers and other academic staff purchase essential tools and materials required for teaching, research and other academic activities.
According to the minister, the payment followed the implementation of the 2025 agreement between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
He assured academic staff that the government remained committed to fulfilling its obligations under the agreement.
“The Office of the Minister of Education is happy to announce that the full CATA payment has now been released by the Federal Government from January to August 2026 to all universities, all polytechnics and colleges of education.
“All these institutions should have received notification to start paying CATA to all academic staff,” he said.
The minister further disclosed that arrangements were underway for the payment of the corresponding allowance to non-academic staff.
He expressed optimism that funds for the non-academic staff allowance would be made available within the next few weeks.
Alausa said the latest intervention demonstrated President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to improving the welfare of workers in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
He added that the Federal Government was simultaneously investing in educational infrastructure and other areas aimed at strengthening the sector.
The minister said the administration was determined to provide Nigerian children with quality education that would enable them compete favourably with their counterparts anywhere in the world.
He described the government’s interventions in the education sector as transformative, stressing that efforts would continue towards improving standards across tertiary institutions.
