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Abstract

Globally, Leadership in higher education continues to be under intense pressure to respond to societal issues resulting from trends in economic and social forces that bring both possible disruption and/or opportunity. Thus, integration of ethical and values education into higher education leadership in Nigeria is pivotal to fostering transformative leadership that aligns with global standards. This is in realization of the fact that Nigeria's higher education system faces challenges such as corruption, lack of accountability, and ethical lapses that hinder its global competitiveness. The lack of proper moral insight may be one of the explanations for the social upheavals and crisis that are prevalent in the higher educational institutions today.  This paper emphasized that a deliberate re-engineering of higher education leadership in Nigeria, grounded in a robust framework of ethical and values education, is crucial for achieving and sustaining global competitiveness. The paper examined the conceptual underpinnings of ethical and values education, analyzing the current state within Nigerian institutions, identifying key challenges exploring the concept of global competitiveness, and draws upon international best practices and the specific cultural context of Nigeria, and offer actionable recommendations for stakeholders committed to elevating Nigerian higher education on the global stage.