Hot SourceMAHFOUZ A. ADEDIMEJI lists 50 reasons why Unilorin is‘the better by far’ university
When the Federal Military Government decided to establish the University of Ilorin in 1975, the government was mainly concerned about enhancing the capacity of Nigerians in sync with the vision behind the Third National Development Plan. Nothing would have suggested then that the university seedling would blossom some 50 years after to a formidable oak in the global university ecosystem, a model for other universities. As many colours make a rainbow a delightful spectacle, there are many facts that make the University of Ilorin tick, all etching it in gold. As the University marks its golden jubilee with events and activities, including the conferment of distinguished ambassadorial awards on its 50 alumni and it’s 40 convocation ceremonies, a sneak peek into facts that make the University a fantastic phenomenon is desirable. What 50 facts make the better by far university phenomenal at 50? Blasts from the Past Beginning with historical facts, it is appropriate to note that the University of Ilorin started as a College of the University of Ibadan, the first University in Nigeria, which also began as a College of the University of London at inception in 1948 (1). The first principal of the University College, Ilorin, was Prof. Takena Tamuno, who was appointed in September 1975 after which he served briefly till December 1975 when he became the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan (2). The second principal and first Vice Chancellor of the University was Prof. Akin Akinkugbe, former Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ibadan, who later became Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (3).
The University started from a chalet at No 5, Forest Road, GRA, Ilorin, where the administrative work of the institution commenced in March, 1976 (4). Other pioneer principal officers were the Registrar, Mr Olu Daramola; the Bursar, Mr. I. A. Oyawoye; and the Librarian, Mr B. A. Oni-Orisan with Engr R. A. Imohiosen being the Director of Works (5). A section of the Kwara State College of Technology was given by the new Military Governor, Brig. Gen. General Innih, to serve as the temporary site in 1976 (6) while the University became an autonomous institution in 1977 (7). With a land mass of 15,000 hectares, the University is not only the largest in Nigeria but also “the largest university permanent site in all of Africa”, according to Akinkugbe in his 2010 autobiography, Footprints & Footnotes (p.126) (8). The University started with 200 students who resumed on October 23, 1976 (9). It began as an international university as two pioneer students were foreigners, paving the way for the emergence of the University as one with the highest enrolment of international students in Nigeria years later as acknowledged by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) (10). The acclaimed better by far University started with three Faculties under the distinguished Deanships of Prof. O. Awobuluyi of Arts, Prof. J. O. O. Abiri of Education and Prof. M. O. Olofinboba of Science (11). The 200 pioneer students were 61, 108 and 31 respectively in the Faculties of Arts, Education and Science (12). While postgraduate studies started at the University in 1978 with two students in the Faculty of Science, the Postgraduate School was only established on November 8, 1983 (13). The University Library was opened in 1976 and restructured in 1977 with its initial holdings being 7,314 books, 594 journals made up of 1,500 volumes and 63 government publications (14). The current main University Library was built on the Permanent Site in 1990 (15). Current Crosscurrents At 50, the University of Ilorin has 16 Faculties which are Agriculture, Arts, Basic Clinical Sciences, Basic Medical Sciences, Clinical Sciences, Communication and Information Sciences, Education, Engineering and Technology, Environmental Sciences, Law, Life Sciences, Management Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Social Sciences, and Veterinary Medicine (16). With over 100 academic Departments in the given Faculties, the University offers the widest range of academic programmes in Nigeria (17). It is the only public university in Nigeria that has recorded two decades of interrupted academic calendar, a development that can be traced to the year 2000 under the Vice Chancellorship of Prof. Oba Abdulraheem (18).
The University has been the most sought after in Nigeria for more than a decade (19). Meanwhile, other facts include the leadership roles of the University in spearheading the establishment of associations like the Association of West Africa Universities (AWAU), Consortium of Six African Universities (U6+) and Consortium of Eight Universities in Kwara State (KU8+) among others (20); being the first Nigerian University to emerge the overall winner of National Tertiary Admission Performance Merit (NATAP-M) awards of JAMB in 2024 and 2025 under the Vice Chancellorship of Prof. Wahab Egbewole, SAN (21); and emerging as a most prolific producer of Vice Chancellors, the only Nigerian university to produce three Vice Chancellors in a year, which happened in 2024 when it produced the Vice Chancellors of the African School of Economics (The Pan-African University of Excellence), Abuja; Kwara State University of Education, Ilorin; and University of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology, The Gambia (22). Besides, UNILORIN produced the Vice President of the Association of African Universities (AAU) in Prof. Shamsudeen Amali, the seventh Vice Chancellor (23). It is the first Nigerian university to produce the President of the Association of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU) and AAU at the same time as recorded in Prof. Emeritus Is-haq Oloyede, CON, the eighth Vice-Chancellor (24). It is also the first Nigerian university to be ranked among the best 20 universities in Africa in 2011 (25) and the only one to be consistently ranked best in Nigeria for many years by international ranking agencies (26). It is equally the first to introduce Computer-Based Test for screening students in the Nigerian university system in 2008 (27) and the university with the first Student Union to utilise e-voting as a way engendering electoral integrity and transparency, first experimented in 2012 and perfected 2013 under the Vice Chancellorship of Prof. Abdulganiyu Ambali, OON (28). In the media domain, UNILORIN is the first Nigerian university to establish a weekly newsletter that has run consistently for more than one and a half decades (Unilorin Bulletin) (29); the first to establish a campus radio station that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week (UNILORIN 89.3 FM) (30); one of the few with an online Television Channel (UNILORIN TV) (31); one with the highest engagement on the social media culminating in an award in that category in 2025 (32); and the first Nigerian university to win the New Telegraph’s outstanding university award in 2023 under the Vice Chancellorship of Prof. Wahab Egbowole, SAN (33).
Better by far, Best by standard in academic excellence, the University takes the lead being the only university that won three out of 17 slots in Nigerian Universities Doctoral Thesis Award Scheme (NUDTAS) awards in 2008/2009, a feat repeated in 2010, 2011 and 2012 joint editions (34). The University equally filed the highest number of patents – 20 – in 2024 (35); it has been a consistent high performer in winning National Research Council (NRF) grants (36) and is acknowledged to have the highest research output in Scopus-indexed journals in Sub-Sahara Africa (37). It is the first university in Nigeria to have a Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies (38), the first to have Laboratory to Product Centre (LABTOP), established under the Vice Chancellorship of Prof. Sulyman Abdulkareem (39), as well as many innovative centres. It has the highest number of PhDs in any Law Faculty in Nigeria (40) and it is the most prolific at producing Senior Advocates of Nigeria (41), producing the first SAN Vice Chancellor in Northern Nigeria in Prof. Wahab Egbewole, the current Vice Chancellor (42). Moreover, the University is a bastion of sporting excellence, the first to host the West African University Games in the 21st century (43), holding the Guinness World Record of the Longest Mathematics Lesson of 31 hours, 42 minutes and 57 seconds achieved by a student in 2025 (44). It holds another Guinness World Record as fastest five skin fade haircuts by anyone in the world through another student in 2024 (45) and it is the first Nigerian university ever to host the official Guinness World Record verification exercise (46). It has contributed many successful athletes and footballers to the country. At large, UNILORIN is a university with one of the highest institutional collaborators with active MOUs with over 100 institutions (47), its Teaching Hospital is the largest in Northern Nigeria (48) where the first open heart surgery in sub-Sahara Africa was performed and successful separation of conjoined twins was done (49). It produced a public officer who grossed the highest newspaper editorials in the Nigerian university system in contemporary history as was done for Prof. Emeritus Oloyede when he attained 70 (50). So many are the fascinating facts about UNILORIN that mentioning 50 is just acknowledging a negligible fraction. Happy golden anniversary to the better by far University!
Prof. Adedimeji is a distinguished ambassador of the University of Ilorin and Vice Chancellor of the African School of Economics (The Pan-African University of Excellence), Abuja.
