Ondo transfers UNIMED Teaching Hospital to FUTA as College of Medicine

…as Council backs agriculture, infrastructural projects for community development

The Ondo State Executive Council has approved the transfer of the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED) Teaching Hospital complex in Akure to the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), to establish its College of Medicine and Teaching Hospital.

At a meeting chaired by Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa on Thursday, September 11, 2025, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Banji Ajaka, explained that this decision follows President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s endorsement for FUTA to create a College of Medicine.

Dr. Ajaka said the Akure hospital complex will now be handed over to the Federal Government to become FUTA’s primary medical sciences facility. The transfer will include staff, infrastructure, equipment, and liabilities, with all employees absorbed into the FUTA Teaching Hospital under federal authority.

In other developments, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Forestry, Engr. Leye Akinola, announced new strategies to protect local farmers from the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which bans products from deforested lands. The state will promote agroforestry across selected forests and enforce strict farm mapping and traceability for cocoa, cashew, oil palm, and rubber farmers.

He warned that crops lacking verified origin by December 30, 2025, risk rejection in the EU market and pledged government support for farm mapping and permit issuance to ensure continued operations. “By December 30, 2025, any crop that cannot be traced to a mapped farm risks being rejected at the EU market. To safeguard livelihoods, the state will support farm mapping and grant farmers permits to continue operations,” Akinola added.

The Council also approved tariff adjustments on agricultural and timber products to align Ondo State with other Southwest states under the DAWN Commission framework.

The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Idowu Ajanaku, stated that each cabinet member has been tasked with nominating a road project in their local government to boost community development. These projects are additional to the 2025 budget, aimed at improving connectivity without political bias.

Lastly, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Hamidu Takuro, announced the ratification of His Royal Highness Joseph Ilésanmí as the new monarch of Sosan in Akoko South-East Local Government Area.