A Review of Conflict Management in Nigerian Tertiary Institutions

Nigerian tertiary institutions have over the years witnessed incessant conflicts between trade unions, particularly Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Nigerian Government. The existence of conflicts in Nigerian institutions is a mere reflection of the heterogeneous structure of the outer society, where the struggle for a fair share of the common good by individuals and groups is the order of the day. Conflict, which is here defined as a manifestation of disagreement between individuals and groups, arising from differing and mutually incompatible interests, has both positive and negative effects, depending on how it is managed. Managing conflict is all about limiting the negative aspects of conflict, while promoting the positive aspects. This paper attempts to review conflict management in Nigerian tertiary institutions with a focus on Nigerian Universities and how best the positive elements of conflict can be maximally exploited to the mutual benefits of both parties. The major factors that precipitate conflicts between ASUU and the Federal Government include: funding of university system, the issue of university autonomy, staff conditions of service, as well as politics and national issues. There are available strategies that can be used in conflict management. These include avoiding, accommodating or smoothing, competing or forcing, compromising and collaborating. Any of these strategies can be effectively used to manage conflict, depending on the situation, the environmental factors, the nature of the conflict and the parties to the conflict. The problem is that the Nigerian Government often adopted wrong approach in dealing with conflicts with ASUU, using either avoiding or forcing strategies. This paper recommends collaboration strategy, which ensures long-term solution with mutual benefits to both parties.