National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS) was a

students' union A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...

bringing together Nigerian students both within

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

and across the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

. NUNS was founded in 1956, following structural changes in the

West African Students' Union The West African Students' Union (WASU), founded in London, England, in 1925 and active into the 1960s,"History o ...

. It brought together student councils in Ife,

Zaria Zaria is a metropolitan city in Nigeria which at the present time lies within four (4) local government areas in Kaduna state; it happens to be the capital city to the Zazzau Emirate Council, and one of the original seven Hausa city-states ...

, and

Nsukka Nsukka is a town and a Local Government Area in Enugu State, Nigeria. Nsukka shares a common border as a town with Edem, Opi (archaeological site), Ede-Oballa, and Obimo. The postal code of the area is 410001 and 410002 respectively referr ...

. In April 1978, Nigerian students were faced with the imposition of increased fees, and NUNS participated in a series of Campus protests across the whole of Nigeria known as the Ali Must Go protests. The government responded by sending in the army and police, leading to the death or serious wounding of over twenty students. Three universities were closed and NUNS was banned. Several university staff and students were dismissed. Each president of the association has a tenure of 1 year and the current president elected on the 4th of September is Umar Faruq Lawal

References

{{Authority control Student organizations established in 1956 Students' unions in Nigeria