Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko (AAUA), has once again stepped into the global spotlight as nine of its academic staff secured places among the top two per cent of researchers worldwide, according to the 2024 Elsevier–Stanford Global Ranking of Top Scientists.
The Vice Chancellor, Professor Olugbenga Ige, hailed the recognition as proof of AAUA’s steady rise on the international research stage, describing it as a triumph of intellectual excellence and a reinforcement of the university’s reputation as a hub for world-class scholarship.
“This milestone reflects our unwavering commitment to research that has both global relevance and local impact,” Professor Ige noted. “It will inspire not only our staff but also our students to push the boundaries of knowledge.”
World-Class Impact Measured in Numbers
The Elsevier–Stanford ranking, one of the most respected in global academia, assessed over 8.5 million active scientists across 22 disciplines and 176 subfields, narrowing the list down to 190,000 top performers. Nigeria produced 233 honourees, with nine coming from AAUA.
Among them is Professor Sunday Olatunji, Dean of Computing, celebrated for his groundbreaking integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning into real-life problem-solving across science, engineering, and the humanities. With 129 Scopus-indexed publications, 3,992 citations, an h-index of 34 and an i10-index of 93, Olatunji has also been named Nigeria’s best AI researcher for 2025 by the NUC.
Other AAUA scholars on the list include:
Professor Nurudeen Oladoja – 121 publications
Professor Adeleke Ashogbon – 22 publications
Dr. Taiwo Agbede – 51 publications
Dr. Taoreed Owolabi – 97 publications
Dr. Abayomi Oke – 31 publications
Dr. Andrew Falowo – 31 publications
Dr. Oluwatobi Oyeneyin – 54 publications
Dr. Damilola Omoboyowa – 50 publications
Their collective scholarship, all indexed in Scopus, highlights AAUA’s growing footprint in fields ranging from computing and engineering to the sciences and humanities.
Nigeria’s Rising Profile in Academia
The achievement places AAUA shoulder-to-shoulder with other Nigerian institutions producing globally competitive research. For Professor Ige, the recognition is not only a personal victory for the honourees but also a validation of AAUA’s model of fostering interdisciplinary and impactful scholarship.
“With this recognition, AAUA has once again demonstrated that Nigerian universities can stand tall in the global arena,” he affirmed.
