ABUJA — The Federal Government has announced the immediate release and full payment of the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance (CATA) covering eight months—from January to August 2026—for academic staff across all federal universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Olatunji Maruf Alausa, disclosed the development in Abuja shortly after inaugurating the Ministerial Committee on Accreditation, confirming that the disbursement fulfills core provisions of the 2025 Federal Government–Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) agreement signed on January 14, 2026.
The CATA disbursement—designed to enable academic personnel acquire research materials, fund journal publications, access broadband internet, and attend scholarly conferences—is intended to address recurring sources of industrial friction and stabilize the academic calendar across the tertiary education sub-sector.
The Minister added that while the eight-month tools allowance for academic staff has been disbursed, similar allowance packages for non-academic staff across tertiary institutions are currently being processed by the Ministry of Finance and will be released in the coming weeks.
