University of Offa graduates first set
By Mosunmola Ayobami, Ilorin
The University of Offa, Kwara State, has produced its first set of 140 graduates, as Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama urged African governments to make affordable financing, infrastructure and other essential resources accessible to young entrepreneurs.
Mahama, who spoke on Monday at the university’s maiden convocation ceremony, said African leaders must create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive by providing stable institutions, quality infrastructure, relevant education, access to finance and predictable regulations that support job creation.
“Ideas need capital. Businesses need affordable finance. Young innovators need patient capital. Enterprises need efficient payment systems and market access,” he said, warning that encouraging young Africans to become entrepreneurs without providing access to finance, infrastructure and opportunities would leave them with aspirations but no means to achieve them.
Speaking on the theme, From Certificate to Enterprise: Africa’s Graduates as Architects of the Continent’s Economic Future, Mahama, represented by Ghana’s High Commissioner-designate to Nigeria, Baba Sadiq Abdulai Abu, urged the graduates to embrace lifelong learning, adaptability and innovation, particularly in the era of artificial intelligence. He also encouraged them to look beyond Nigeria and explore opportunities across Africa through the African Continental Free Trade Area, stressing that cross-border partnerships could help businesses expand and compete.
Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Kazeem Alagbe Gbolagade, announced that the institution’s first graduating set comprised eight first-class graduates, 54 second-class upper graduates, 76 second-class lower graduates and two third-class graduates. He said the university, licensed in 2021 and established in 2022 with two faculties and 10 programmes, had expanded to four faculties and 17 programmes, covering Science and Computing, Management and Social Sciences, Education, and Health Sciences.
Gbolagade said student enrolment had grown from 81 in the 2022/2023 academic session to 640 newly admitted students in the 2026/2027 session, attributing the growth to the institution’s emphasis on academic excellence, adherence to its academic calendar, information technology and entrepreneurship. He added that the university had signed memoranda of understanding with Highstone International University in the United States and INTI International University in Malaysia to promote research collaboration, staff and student exchanges, grant opportunities and resource sharing.
On entrepreneurship and professional development, the vice-chancellor said the university was facilitating Corporate Affairs Commission registration for students’ businesses and planned to introduce start-up grants for graduates. He also disclosed that the institution had partnered with New Horizon to provide practical information technology training and additional professional certifications, while noting that all its initial 10 programmes had received accreditation from the National Universities Commission. Four Health Sciences programmes — Nursing Science, Doctor of Physiotherapy, Medical Laboratory Science and Community Health Science — also recorded 100 per cent success during an NUC resource verification exercise in April 2026, he said.
However, Gbolagade identified inadequate infrastructure as a major challenge and appealed for support to develop additional student accommodation, faculty buildings, a Senate building, a 1,000-capacity lecture theatre, a library complex, sports facilities, a mosque and a computer-based testing centre. He thanked the university’s founder, Dr. Abdulrasaq Oyewale, for his support and disclosed that the institution had introduced a 50 per cent salary increase for staff effective Oct. 1, 2026, as part of its welfare package.
