History of Universities in Nigeria and dates of their establishment
History of Universities in Nigeria and dates of their establishment. A solid education system is one of the pillars of a successful society.
Any society that seeks to thrive must, first, invest in its human capital, as it is the individual that makes up the society, and the primary aim of education is to improve the individual. It is for this reason that many economic and social analysts have picked out education as the force that drives civilisation and national development. A study of every society that has thrived, from the Greek’s to the Roman’s, will prove this assertion correct. With this in mind, we can say that the development we seek in Nigeria first starts with improving our education system.
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Live, Study and Work in Canada. No Payment is Required! Hurry Now click here to Apply >> Immigrate to CanadaNigeria’s education system, especially at university level, has gone through various stages, from the Elliot commission of 1943, to the establishment of the University College, Ibadan, and the other first generation universities, down to the establishment of the fourth generation universities and the National Open University of Nigeria of the present day.
Those who went through the early phases will agree that there has been considerable improvement in the system of things, although when compared to how things are done in other climes, they’ll also agree that there is much left to be done.
This purpose of this article, however, is not to point out the obvious ills in the Nation’s education system at university level or to look at the way forward, but to outline briefly the history of university education in Nigeria, as well as outline some important dates from the early days till today.
History of University Education in Nigeria
The history of university education in Nigeria began with the Elliot commission of 1943, which then lead to the establishment of the University College, Ibadan – which was at as at the time of its establishment an affiliate of the University of London – in 1948.
The UCI, as it was known for short, suffered a number of problems in its early years, not least among them were poor staffing, low enrolment, high dropout rate, and inadequate funding. In 1959, another commission, the Ashby commission, was set up by the federal government to advise it on the needs of the higher education sector in the country.
The following year, however, the eastern region would establish it’s own university – The University of Nigeria, Nsukka – at Nsukka. Two years later, in 1962, the Western region and Northern region would follow suit by establishing the University of Ife, which would later become Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, respectively.
The federal government would also create the University of Lagos, as well as make the University College, Ibadan, a full-fledged university, in the same year. Thus, the UCI and the University of Lagos became the country’s first federal universities. The other universities, however, remained regional. In 1970, the Midwestern region joined the Northern, Eastern, and Western regoin in owning a university of its own, as it established the University of Benin.
Thus, the first set of Nigeria’s universities, popularly called the first generation universities, were born. Seven more universities were established by the federal government during the period of the Third National Development Plan (1975-1980). They were the Universities of Port-Harcourt, Calabar, Jos, Ilorin, Maiduguri, Sokoto, and Ado Bayero University, Kano. These Universities became Nigeria’s second generation universities.
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Live, Study and Work in Canada. No Payment is Required! Hurry Now click here to Apply >> Immigrate to CanadaThe federal government would also take over the four regional universities in 1975. 1980-1990 saw the establishment of Nigeria’s third generation universities in Owerri, Makurdi, Yola, Akure, and Bauchi. State universities were also created in Lagos, Imo, Ondo, Oyo, Cross-River, And Akwa-Ibom. More federal universities, state universities, and the National open university – all termed Nigeria’s fourth generation universities – were established from 1991 till date.
Dates of Establishment of Nigerian federal universities.
1 Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi – 1988
2 Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria -1962
3 Bayero University, Kano – 1975
4 Federal University Gashua, Yobe – 2013
5 Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun – 2007
6 Federal University of Technology, Akure – 1981
7 Federal University of Technology, Minna -1982
8 Federal University of Technology, Owerri – 1980
9 Federal University, Dutse, Jigawa State -2011
10 Federal University, Dutsin-Ma, Katsina – 2011
11 Federal University, Kashere, Gombe State – 2011
12 Federal University, Lafia, Nasarawa State -2011
13 Federal University, Lokoja, Kogi State – 2011
14 Federal University, Ndifu-Alike, Ebonyi State – 2011
15 Federal University, Otuoke, Bayelsa – 2011
16 Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State – 2011
17 Federal University, Wukari, Taraba State – 2011
18 Federal University, Birnin Kebbi – 2013
19 Federal University, Gusau Zamfara – 2013
20 Michael Okpara University of Agricultural Umudike – 2013
21 Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola – 1981
22 National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos – 2002
23 Nigeria Police Academy Wudil – 2013
24 Nigerian Defence Academy Kaduna – 1985
25 Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka – 1992
26 Obafemi Awolowo University,Ile-Ife – 1962
27 University of Abuja, Gwagwalada – 1988
28 Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta – 1988
29 University of Agriculture, Makurdi – 1988
30 University of Benin – 1970
31 University of Calabar – 1975
32 University of Ibadan – 1948
33 University of Ilorin – 1975
34 University of Jos – 1975
35 University of Lagos – 1962
36 University of Maiduguri – 1975
37 University of Nigeria, Nsukka – 1960
38 University of Port-Harcourt – 1975
39 University of Uyo – 1991
40 Usumanu Danfodiyo University – 1975
Date of establishment of Nigerian state universities
1 Abia State University, Uturu – 1981
2 Adamawa State University Mubi – 2002
3 Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba – 1999
4 Akwa Ibom State University of Technology, Uyo – 2010
5 Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma – 1980
6 Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Uli – 2000
7 Bauchi State University, Gadau – 2011
8 Benue State University, Makurdi – 1992
9 Yobe State University, Damaturu – 2006
10 Cross River State University of Science &Technology, Calabar – 2004
11 Delta State University Abraka – 1992
12 Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki – 2000
13 Ekiti State University – 1982
14 Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu – 1982
15 Gombe State University, Gombe – 2004
16 Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai – 2005
17 Ignatius Ajuru University of Education,Rumuolumeni – 2010
18 Imo State University, Owerri – 1992
19 Sule Lamido University, Kafin Hausa, Jigawa – 2013
20 Kaduna State University, Kaduna – 2004
21 Kano University of Science & Technology, Wudil – 2000
22 Kebbi State University, Kebbi – 2006
23 Kogi State University Anyigba – 1999
24 Kwara State University, Ilorin – 2009
25 Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso – 1990
26 Ondo State University of Science and Technology Okitipupa – 2008
27 River State University of Science and Technology – 1979
28 Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye – 1982
29 Lagos State University, Ojo – 1983
30 Niger Delta University Yenagoa – 2000
31 Nasarawa State University Keffi – 2002
32 Plateau State University Bokkos – 2005
33 Tai Solarin University of Education Ijebu Ode – 2005
34 Umar Musa Yar’ Adua University Katsina – 2006
35 Osun State University Osogbo – 2006
36 Taraba State University, Jalingo – 2008
37 Sokoto State University – 2009
38 Northwest University Kano- 2012
39 Oyo State Technical University Ibadan – 2012
40 Ondo State University of Medical Sciences- 2015
41 Edo University Iyamo – 2016
42 Eastern Palm University Ogboko, Imo State – 2016
43 University of Africa Toru Orua, Bayelsa State – 2016
44 Bornu State University, Maiduguri – 2016
Conclusion
University education in Nigeria has come a long way since the early 1940s. From having just 5 universities during the early years of independence, Nigeria now has over 80 government-owned universities and over 60 private institutes of higher education. The worry now is not the number of universities in the country, but the standard of education. While there remains a cry to establish more universities, as the number of students sitting for JAMB examinations grows year by year, and the universities currently on ground cannot accommodate all who are qualified for admission, there is also a louder cry to see the education system improve, as creating more universities while ignoring the education system itself would see the current situation worsen. We hope this article has been helpful. Let us know.