Author: Sodiq Mojibola

A Lagos State University (LASU) 300-level Mass Communication student, Fajana Mary, has won top prize at a fiercely contested environmental debate after arguing that Lagos State should not wait for the federal intervention to tackle its pollution challenges. Mary emphasised that Lagos state possesses both the authority and capacity to tackle transboundary pollution. The debate formed part of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency’s (LASEPA) 2026 Inter-Tertiary Institutions Environmental Summit 2.0, which brought together six finalists from universities across the state to examine whether tackling transboundary pollution requires city-level action or national intervention. The motion before the students was: “Combating…

Experts from academia, government agencies and the private sector have called for indigenous technological development, stronger policy enforcement and a cultural shift in energy consumption as key steps towards addressing Nigeria’s persistent energy crisis. They made the call during a three-day workshop on Africa’s energy future, hosted at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) and organised by the African Engineering and Technology Network (AFRETEC). The event, themed “Empowering Africa’s Energy Transition: Innovations, Challenges and Collaborative Pathways” brought together policymakers, academics and industry stakeholders to explore practical solutions to Africa’s energy challenges in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7,…

The United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Monday handed over a new innovation hub and business office to the University of Lagos (UNILAG) and committed an additional ₦60 million to the institution’s Professorial Chair in Finance. Constructed on 1,400 square metres of land, the building is shared between the university and the bank, with 52 per cent allocated to the university and 48 per cent to UBA.  The Vice Chancellor of UNILAG, Folasade Ogunsola, a Professor of Medical Microbiology, received the facility alongside the management team. UBA’s Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, and Chairperson of the…

The United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has unveiled a diaspora investment initiative to attract Nigerian professionals abroad into financing critical healthcare infrastructure, including specialist hospitals, diagnostic centres, telemedicine facilities, and medical training institutions across Nigeria. The initiative was presented at the 2026 Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas (ANPA) Carolinas Symposium in Charlotte, North Carolina, where the bank urged Nigerian-American medical professionals to move beyond remittance-based support towards institutional healthcare investments aimed at improving access to quality medical services in Nigeria. The symposium, organised annually by the South Carolina and North Carolina chapters of ANPA, brought together more…

Female candidates have again outnumbered their male counterparts in the 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), as the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) expands the computer-based format across Nigeria and neighbouring countries. WAEC disclosed on Monday that 1,001,072 female candidates, representing 51.08 per cent of the 1,959,636 total candidature, registered for the examination, compared to 958,564 male candidates, representing 48.92 per cent. The figures show that female candidates have maintained their lead in the examination, though with a slightly wider margin than in 2025, when 994,025 female candidates, representing 50.37 per cent, and 979,228 male candidates, representing 49.63…

Civil society organisations and residents in Lagos Island have called for greater citizen participation in local governance after budget data showed that the local government plans to spend ₦16.62 billion in 2026 despite generating only ₦638 million internally. The figures were presented at a civic engagement meeting organised under the Coalition of Participatory Governance (CPG), where residents, development partners and advocacy groups pressed the Lagos Island Local Government Area (LGA) to open governance processes to citizens and strengthen accountability at the grassroots. The meeting, themed “Participatory Governance: A Critical Tool for Inclusivity, Peace and Development,” brought together ward residents, market…

The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has suspended its nationwide strike after the Federal Government pledged to conclude negotiations on outstanding demands within two weeks. The suspension, which takes effect from Monday, 11 May, followed a series of meetings between union leaders and the Federal Government’s expanded tertiary institutions renegotiation committee, led by Yayale Ahmed. The industrial action, which began on Friday, 1 May, had paralysed administrative and non-academic activities across public universities and inter-university centres nationwide over unresolved issues surrounding…

Nigeria’s university system is once again on the edge of disruption as academic and non-academic unions have threatened actions over stalled agreements, persistent salary delays, and what they described as a continued breakdown in the management of the sector. The warning came a few minutes after the non-academic staff of Nigerian universities announced the commencement of a nationwide strike action in response to the alleged failure of the government to complete the ongoing 2009 agreement renegotiation with the unions, among other demands. Two major unions- Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and…

Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is again thrown into mourning following the death of a 400-level student of Entrepreneurship, Aderonke Oke. This comes barely seven days after a 400-level medical student of the university died during a clinical examination. Aderonke’s death was confirmed in a statement jointly signed by the General Secretary and President of the National Association of Entrepreneurship Students (NAES), OAU, Oluwatobi Adeyemi and Adeola Bakare, respectively. According to the statement, the sad incident occurred on Tuesday, 28 April, noting that investigations into the cause of her death have commenced. While the cause of her death is yet to…

A community engagement for the African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC) waste management baseline study has highlighted both the scale of waste management challenges and the economic potential embedded in Ajegunle, Ikorodu Road, Lagos. The engagement held on Tuesday, 28 April, in Ajegunle, included a field visit to a plastics waste collection point and an urban garden site, reinforcing calls for practical, community-led solutions. Findings from the study conducted by the ACRC, Rethinking Cities, and the Centre for Housing and Sustainable Development, show that over 400 households across Ajegunle, Irawo and Thomas Community Development Associations face limited access to formal waste…