Professional Evaluation of Herbarium Collections as Biodiversity Information Infrastructure in Nigerian Universities

University herbaria are foundational biodiversity information infrastructure for taxonomy, conservation, and ecological research, yet their condition, coverage, and professional management across Nigerian universities have not been evaluated systematically in recent years. This study evaluated the herbarium collections of eight Nigerian university herbaria across all six geopolitical zones against internationally recognised Consortium of North American Herbaria standards adapted for the African context. Herbaria assessed included University of Lagos (South West), University of Nigeria Nsukka (South East), University of Port Harcourt (South South), Ahmadu Bello University (North West), University of Maiduguri (North East), University of Jos (North Central), University of Ibadan (South West), and Bayero University Kano (North West). Evaluation criteria covered collection size, geographic and taxonomic coverage, specimen curation quality, digitisation progress, staff capacity, annual acquisition rate, and integration with global biodiversity databases. Results revealed that University of Ibadan and Ahmadu Bello University maintained the largest collections (above 15,000 specimens each) and best curation standards. Digitisation progress was minimal across all herbaria, with fewer than 8% of specimens in any collection available in electronic databases accessible via GBIF. Three herbaria had not acquired new specimens in more than two years. Staffing was below minimum professional standards in six of eight institutions. The study concludes that Nigerian university herbaria are significantly under-resourced and under-digitised, and recommends a National Herbarium Modernisation Fund and mandatory digitisation targets for NUC-accredited herbaria.

Keywords: herbarium, biodiversity informatics, university collections, digitisation, Nigeria