TheUniversity of Ibadan (UI) is a public university located inIbadan,Oyo State,Nigeria. Initially founded as the University College Ibadan in 1948, it maintained its affiliation with theUniversity of London. In 1962, it became an independentinstitution, making it the oldest degree-awarding institution in Nigeria. The University of Ibadan has significantly contributed to Nigeria'spolitical,industrial,economic, andcultural development through its extensive network of graduates.
UI enrolls about 33,000 students, is internationally recognized, and has a number of accomplished alumni.[2]
The opening of Sultan Bello Hall by Alhaji SirAhmadu Bello, University College Ibadan, on Second February 1962 (Kenneth Dike to the left, Ahmadu Bello to the right)
The university was established in 1948 as University College Ibadan, a branch of theUniversity of London, which supervised its academic programs and awarded degrees until 1967.[3][4][5] The establishment came as a result of a recommendation from the Asquith and the Elliot Commissions on Higher Education in the then-Britishcolonies, that two Universities stemming from the University of London should be set up inGhana[6] andNigeria.[7] Before 1948,Yaba College had been founded in 1932 inYaba, Lagos, as the first tertiary educational institute inNigeria, focused primarily on providing post-secondary vocational education and teacher training to Africans.
However, the limited aims ofYaba College and clamor by Nigerian nationalists for self-improvement and uninhibited education led to the establishment of University College Ibadan as the first degree-awarding institution in Nigeria in 1948.[8][9] Staff and students from Yaba Higher College were transferred toIbadan to form the new University College Ibadan.[10]
Modelled after theBritish university system,Kenneth Mellanby was appointed in 1947 as its firstprincipal, and he inaugurated the university college on 18 January 1948.[11] The sod of its permanent site was cut on 17 November 1948, a date now known as its Founders' Day. The university's first buildings were designed by eminent modernist architectsMaxwell Fry andJane Drew.[12] Following thetropical modernist style, the 1950s construction comprised administrative blocks, residential colleges and academic facilities.[13]
Following Nigeria's independence in 1960 and the subsequent drive to domesticate several institutions, UCI became an established full-fledged independent university in early 1962 and thus, the name changed to University of Ibadan.[14]
In late 1963, on the university playing fields, with a celebration marked bytalking drums, the Rt. Hon. SirAbubakar Tafawa Balewa, the first Prime Minister of independent Nigeria, became the first Chancellor of this independent university. The first Nigerian vice-chancellor of the university wasKenneth Dike, after whom the university library is named.[15]
The university consistently ranks as one of the best in Nigeria.[24] In September 2016, it became the first Nigerian university to make the top 1,000 inTimes Higher Education rankings. Prior to that, it had always made the top 10 African Universities inWebometrics Rankings.[25][26] UI is currently ranked No. 1 in Nigeria and 1,177 in the world according to Webometrics.[27] The US News and World Report rank the University as the 350th in Best Global Universities.[28]
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research, Innovation and Strategic Partnerships)
Prof. Oluyemisi A. Bamgbose, SAN, FCIArb
Registrar
Mr. G.O. Saliu, MANUPA, MNIM, MAUA
Bursar
Mr. Adewuyi Popoola
University librarian
Dr. Mercy A. Iroaganachi
The university is made up of 92 academic departments organized into 17 faculties, namely: Arts, Science, Basic Medical Sciences,Clinical Sciences,Agriculture, the Social Sciences, Education,Veterinary Medicine,Pharmacy,Technology,Law,Public Health,Dentistry, Economics and Management Sciences, all Renewable Natural Resources, Environmental Design and Management, and Multidisciplinary Studies. The Faculties of theBasic Medical Sciences, Clinical Sciences, Public Health and Dentistry are organized as aCollege of Medicine. The university has other academic units, among which are: Institute of Child Health, Institute of Education, Institute of African Studies, Centre for Child Adolescent and Mental Health, Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI), Institute for Advanced Medical Research and Training (IAMRAT), Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Centre for Drug Discovery, Development & Production (CDDDP) and Centre for Control & Prevention ofZoonosis (CCPZ).[30] The recently established Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), School of Business (UISB) and National Institute for Maternal, Child & Neonatal Health (NIMCNH) have commenced operation.[30]
IFRA-Nigeria (Institut français de recherche en Afrique) – an institute funded by the French government to promote research in the social sciences and the humanities and improve collaborative work between academics in France andWest Africa.[34]
Among the notable structures in the university is the centralKenneth Dike Library (popularly called "KDL" by the students), located just beside the Faculty of Arts. The library, which has a large capacity for students, contains books relating to virtually all fields of knowledge both in and outside the university community.
The library is named after ProfessorKenneth Dike, who was the first indigenous Principal and former Vice-Chancellor of the university. It was established out of the desires of the founding fathers and matriarch of the institution to cut a niche for research and sound teaching.[44]
The library contains 700,000 volumes of information and more than 1,250 seats for readers. It is open to all senior staff, students of the institution, senior staff of theUniversity College Hospital, (UCH) Ibadan as well as alumni of the university.
Ebrohimie Road, a street in the University of Ibadan, was the subject of a documentary film,Ebrohimie Road: A Museum of Memory, released in July 2024, written by Nigerian writer and linguistKola Tubosun. The street features a campus bungalow where Nigerian writer and Nobel LaureateWole Soyinka lived with his family from around 1967 to around 1972, and which has played a significant role in the history of the country, the university, and the writer himself.[76][77]
^Jackson, Iain (2016).The architecture of Edwin Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew : twentieth century architecture, pioneer modernism and the tropics. Jessica Holland. London: Routledge.ISBN978-1-315-61249-2.OCLC948604978.
^"Recent Work by Fry, Drew & Partners and Fry, Drew, Drake & Lasdun in West Africa".Architectural Design.25. May 1955.
^"Executive Chairman, EFCC". Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. 11 June 2008. Archived fromthe original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved25 September 2009.
van den Berghe, Pierre L. (1973).Power and privilege at an African university. With the assistance of Paul Alabi [and others]. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.ISBN0710075855.
Teferra, Damtew;Altbach, Philip G., eds. (2003).African higher education: An international reference handbook. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.ISBN978-0-253-34186-0.
