Tinubu appoints ex-UNILAG VC Ogundipe as NUC Chairman

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA—PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has appointed Professor Oluwatoyin Temitayo Ogundipe as chairman of the governing board of the National Universities Commission (NUC).

He succeeds Emeritus Professor Olufemi Raphael Aina, who resigned his appointment after less than one year in office.

President Tinubu appointed Professor Aina in July last year, and the board members were inaugurated in November 2025.

Professor Ogundipe, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos (2017–2022), is a professor of Botany with expertise in molecular plant taxonomy, biosystematics, ethnobotany, cytogenetics, forensic botany, and ecological conservation.

He holds a PhD in Botany from Obafemi Awolowo University and an MBA from the University of Lagos.

Currently, Professor Ogundipe, 66, serves as Pro-Chancellor of Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State.

He is a fellow of several professional bodies, including the Nigerian Academy of Science, the Linnaean Society of London, and the Royal Society of Biology, London. He has also served as President of the Botanical Society of Nigeria and Chairman of the Lagos State Science, Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC).

As NUC Chairman, Professor Ogundipe will oversee the regulatory body of the Nigerian university system, focusing on funding, global competitiveness and academic stability.

According to the statement by the presidential spokesman, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, “President Tinubu expects Ogundipe to provide visionary leadership at the NUC and sustain the credibility of the Nigerian university system, in alignment with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, by advancing quality, access, and integrity in the education sector.”