By Desire Uzochukwu
Founder and Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), Aare Afe Babalola, will receive honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from two universities in Canada and the United States as the institution prepares to graduate 2,194 students at its 14th convocation.
Trinity Western University, Canada, and Trinity International University, United States, will confer the honours on Babalola during the grand finale of the convocation ceremonies scheduled for October 21, 2026.
The Vice-Chancellor of ABUAD, Prof. Smaranda Olarinde, disclosed this at a press conference to herald the university’s 14th convocation ceremonies, scheduled to run from October 14 to 21.
Olarinde said the honorary degrees recognise Babalola’s contributions to legal scholarship, educational innovation, philanthropy, social development and leadership.
According to her, the international recognition also reflects the impact of the legal icon’s investments in education and institution-building, as well as his longstanding commitment to public service.
In a related development, the university will confer honorary Doctor of Letters degrees, honoris causa, on three Nigerians: Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo; Chairman of Cavista Holdings, John Olajide; and business leader, Dr Rosemary Osula Mku-Atu.
The vice-chancellor said the awards were designed to recognise the recipients’ contributions to society and inspire graduating students to combine professional accomplishments with service to humanity.
She said Okonkwo would be honoured for his contributions to enterprise, philanthropy and the advancement of quality, functional education.
Olajide, she added, would receive the award in recognition of his investments in enterprise and support for healthcare, education, poverty alleviation and women’s empowerment.
Mku-Atu would be recognised for her commitment to supporting the less privileged and promoting quality education.
Meanwhile, the university said 2,194 students would graduate at the convocation, making the Class of 2026 its largest graduating cohort since the institution commenced academic activities in January 2010.
Of the total, 1,759 students are completing undergraduate and professional programmes, while 435 are graduating from postgraduate programmes.
The postgraduate category comprises 359 students from the College of Postgraduate Studies and 76 from the ABUAD Business School’s postgraduate programmes.
Olarinde disclosed that 286 graduands earned first-class degrees, while 824 obtained second-class upper degrees.
Another 234 students earned second-class lower degrees, while 29 graduated with third-class degrees. The remaining graduands completed professional or postgraduate programmes to which the conventional undergraduate degree classifications do not apply.
The figures highlight the university’s growing graduating population, from 103 graduands at its inaugural convocation in 2013 to 2,194 in 2026.
Speaking on the significance of the honorary awards, Olarinde said: “These honours on Afe Babalola will further underscore the international recognition of a life devoted to institution-building, transformative leadership and service to humanity.
“His insistence that education must solve problems and improve society is reflected in our teaching, professional training, research, farms, industrial park, the ABUAD Multisystem Hospital, community engagements and international partnerships.”
The vice-chancellor said the university remained committed to producing graduates equipped with professional competence, ethical values and practical skills to contribute to national development.
“To our graduates, an ABUAD certificate carries both honour and responsibility. You are leaving a University that expects you to be competent, disciplined, ethical, guided by the highest integrity and useful to yourselves and society.
“The value of your education will be measured not only by the positions you occupy, but by the problems you solve, the people you serve and the integrity with which you conduct yourselves,” she said.
Olarinde stressed that Nigeria needed an education system capable of developing knowledge and character while preparing graduates to create value, solve problems and contribute meaningfully to national renewal.
According to her, investment in universities goes beyond academic training, as it also supports critical sectors of the economy, including healthcare, food security, technology, enterprise, public administration and national stability.
“No nation can develop beyond the quality of its education. Investment in universities is therefore an investment in healthcare, food security, technology, enterprise, public administration, security and national stability,” she said.
She reaffirmed the university’s commitment to developing students’ knowledge, practical skills and moral values, adding that its goal was to prepare graduates who could create opportunities and serve their communities.
The convocation lecture, titled “Functional Education and the Nigeria Project: Strategic Human Capital Development for National Renewal,” will be delivered by Okonkwo.
Olarinde said the theme was particularly relevant to Nigeria’s development needs, stressing the importance of an education system that equips graduates with the knowledge, character and practical skills required to create value, solve problems and contribute to national renewal.
The 14th convocation ceremonies are scheduled to run from October 14 to 21, with the honorary degree presentations and other activities culminating in the grand finale on October 21.
