Hundreds of University of Lagos students marched through the Akoka campus on Thursday to protest sharp rises in private hostel rents that pushed some single rooms to nearly one million naira per session.
The students say some private promoters hiked charges by about forty percent compared with last session, and that the increases left many scrambling for cash or new places to stay.
On the ground, crowds gathered near the main gate and on nearby roads, with pupils carrying hand-written placards and calling for help from the school and government to halt what they called “exploitative” rates. Reports say the scene grew tense but stayed largely peaceful as security moved in to manage traffic.
Students and local checks show a common pattern: a room that rented for around ₦500,000 last session now lists for more than ₦710,000 for four occupants, while single-occupancy rooms have been advertised at up to ₦950,000 per academic year. Those figures, if paid, push total yearly housing costs well past many families’ budgets.
Private hostels grew around the Akoka and Idi-Araba campuses after delays and limits in the university’s own halls left students without enough on-campus options, and landlords say higher running costs forced some price jumps. Still, students argue the timing and scale of the increases are unfair.
University records and earlier reporting show UNILAG has long had far fewer official bed spaces than students, a shortfall that created steady demand for private rooms off campus. Last year’s reporting put campus bed space at under 8,000 for tens of thousands of enrolled students, a gap that puts pressure on local rents.
Student leaders at the protest said many families were already stretching to pay school fees and other costs, and that the sudden jump in housing costs risks forcing some to drop out or take unsafe loans. Multiple student accounts and campus sources painted a picture of anxiety and quick planning to find cheaper or shared options.
Hostel promoters contacted by reporters defended the increases, pointing to higher electricity bills, fuel for generators, rising maintenance costs, and general inflation as reasons they raised prices. They said those costs hit small operators hard and left them little choice but to pass on the burden.
Campus officials acknowledged the wider housing problem but said the university cannot directly set prices for private homes near campus. The head of the student affairs unit redirected media requests to a formal email channel while management reviewed the situation, according to press checks.
Across social media, videos and posts helped the story spread, with clips showing groups of students walking through campus and chanting about housing costs. Those posts echoed long-running frustrations about limited on-campus beds and sporadic renovation work that sent more students into the private market.
Parents and some alumni spoke up online, warning that the new price points make UNILAG look less open to all Nigerians and more like a place for families who can pay private housing premiums. Others said the rise was a sign the university and city must work together on housing supply.
The student affairs office has previously used balloting to allocate scarce hall spaces, and past notices show the university runs limited allocation drives while repairs and new projects move slowly. That history, students say, means private hostels will remain vital unless the university can speed up official bed-space expansions.
Some campus watchers reminded readers that similar fee tensions have flared before, when management or external circumstances pushed up costs for students in other faculties, like the medical college, and protests followed. Those past rows have sometimes led to short-lived policy shifts or negotiation, but not always to quick relief.
As of the latest reporting, student groups said they would keep pressure on the university and on local hostel operators until they see a clear plan to limit sudden rent hikes or widen access to lower-cost housing. Campus leaders asked for meetings with officials to press for demands and possible interim fixes.
Local authorities and private operators may yet announce measures, and university spokespeople told reporters they were collecting facts and would respond properly to formal enquiries made through the communication office email address listed on the university site.