*First University In Nigeria: Public and Private*
This post is going to give you information on the first university to be established in Nigeria, we are going to give you details on the first public university in the country and also the first private owned university in Nigeria. Public owned universities are universities controlled by the Government of Nigeria either at State or Federal level while private universities are run by individuals and private bodies.
Want to know the first Public university in Nigeria? Here is your answer, the first public owned university is also the first university in the country. The name of the University is University of Ibadan (UI) and was founded in the year 1948. The University of Ibadan is run by the Federal Government of Nigeria and is currently one of the topped raked universities in Africa. Located just 8Km from the center of Ibadan which is the largest city in Africa, the university has produced many great men in Nigeria and the world today. Prominent among them is Prof. Wole Soyinka who won the Nobel Laureate prize for literature in the year 1986, others include Ken Saro-Wiwa, China Achebe and lots more. The first Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan was Kennett Dike, his name has lived on as the University Libra is named after him. The university of Ibadan began with programmes in Arts, science and medicine and have since grown into the finest in the country and region, the institution is ranked number four in Africa and number one in Nigeria. A tour around the University premises would impress you as you are going to see the rich infrastructure within the premises.
Now let’s move on to the next part of this article which is the First Private University in Nigeria. The name of the institution is Igbinedion University Okada (IUO) and was established in the year 1999. The name of the university is a combination of both the founder and the town which it is located. The institution was founded by Sir Gabriel Igbinedion and is situated at Okada Town, Benin city of Edo State Nigeria. The pioneer private owned university in Nigeria was established with the vision of a strike free and international standard tertiary institution in the country. The Igbinedion University Okada has since lived on to that standard as they have never had an interruption to their academic calendar and have also produce quality scholars. Other top personalities in the country have since followed the footsteps of Sir Gabriel Igbinedion by also establishing private institutions in the country.