President Tinubu appoints Prof. Oluwatoyin Temitayo Ogundipe as NUC board chairman.

     By Ifeoluwa Christiana Oni

The Immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos Professor Oluwatoyin Temitayo Ogundipe, will now head the Governing Board of the National Universities Commission NUC after his appointment by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Bayo Onanuga, Special adviser to the president on information and strategy confirmed the development in a released statement.

The 66-year-old academic takes over from Emeritus Professor Olufemi Raphael Aina who stepped down less than twelve months after President Tinubu named him to the role in July 2025.

In his new position, Prof. Ogundipe is tasked with steering policy for Nigeria’s university system. Key priorities include university funding reform, global competitiveness and academic stability.

According to the Presidency,”President Tinubu expects Professor Oluwatoyin to provide visionary leadership at the National Universities Commission and sustain the credibility of the Nigerian university system in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda”.

Prof. Ogundipe led UNILAG as Vice-Chancellor between 2017 and 2022. A botanist by training, his research spans molecular plant taxonomy, ethnobotany, cytogenetics, forensic botany, and ecological conservation. He earned his PhD in Botany from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and later completed an MBA at the University of Lagos.

He is currently the Pro-Chancellor of Redeemer’s University, Ede, He is a fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science, the Linnaean Society of London, and the Royal Society of Biology. He has also served as the president of the Botanical Society of Nigeria and Chairman of the Lagos State Science, Research and Innovation Council.

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