A student of the University of Lagos Business School (ULBS), Aliyu Gafaar, has achieved a historic milestone by graduating with a perfect 5.0 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).
This feat is the first of its kind since the establishment of the business school in 2013.
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The Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Folasade Ogunsola announced this remarkable achievement on the third day of the 55th convocation ceremonies.
A total of 6,725 students were awarded postgraduate degrees, comprising 6,659 from the School of Postgraduate Studies and 66 from the UNILAG Business School.
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Fifty seven students earned Master of Business Administration degrees, three graduated with Master of Non-Interest Finance, and six completed a Master of Public Health.
The overall PhD Thesis and best PhD Thesis in Science was awarded to Adetoun Akitoye, PhD Chemistry; and the best PhD in Hummanities was awarded to Eniola Ladipo.
Graduate reflects on achievement
Reflecting on his record-breaking CGPA, the best graduating student of ULBS expressed his gratitude and shared the motivation behind his remarkable accomplishment with PREMIUM TIMES.
Mr Gafaar said he is filled with excitement, gratitude, humility, and inspiration.
“As the first person to achieve this remarkable feat, I am understandably thrilled,” he said.
He acknowledged the support of God, his family, professors, and classmates.
Looking ahead, Mr Gafaar revealed his plans to give back by mentoring others.
He said: “The motivation for the feat was to be the best I could be. I intend to use the knowledge and skills gained to mentor and support those who follow in my footsteps as they strive for excellence.”
He revealed plans to further his academic journey, having enrolled in the ULBS Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) programme to mentor and facilitate the growth of other business professionals.
Celebrating excellence
The convocation ceremony also recognised various individuals “who have retired but continue to contribute to scholarship and academia.”
Two distinguished professors, Babajide Alo, from the Department of Chemistry, and Olukayode Amund, Department of Microbiology, were awarded Professor Emeritus status for their ongoing contributions to the academia.
Victor Ariole from the Department of European Languages was also awarded a Gold Medal for his outstanding contributions to the university and the nation.
Also three personalities were conferred with honorary degrees: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO); Fola Adeola, co-founder of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank Plc), and Kolawole Adesina, the group managing director (GMD) of Sahara Power Group.
“We are very honoured that these three personalities accepted our recognitions. Unfortunately, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala will be unable to attend in person this year, but we will confer on her at next years convocation ceremony,” Mrs Ogunsola noted.
Convocation highlights
The 55th convocation ceremony featured a lecture delivered by Tayo Aduloju, CEO of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG), on 15 January.
Mr Aduloju lecture titled “Universities as Hubs for Development and Wealth Creation,” emphasised the critical role of Nigerian universities in nation-building.
The day also featured an exhibition showcasing innovations by UNILAG staff members and students, including the production of lithium batteries and alternate energy sources powered by sound.
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Also, three major projects were commissioned by the Pro-Chancellor, Wole Olanipekun, including the African Centre of Excellence for Drug Research, Herbal Medicine Development, and Regulatory Science (ACEDHARS).
ACEDHARS is a World Bank-supported initiative focused on developing indigenous plants for medical applications.
Over the past two days, 9,865 graduates have been admitted to first degrees and diplomas from various faculties and the Distance Learning Institute.
Two students from the Faculty of Science, Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, Haroun Adebakin and Samuel Badekale emerged the overall best graduating students with a perfect CGPA score of 5.0.
Olamide Idris Emida from the Faculty of Management Sciences emerged as the best-graduating student from the humanities with a CGPA of 4.95.
The vice chancellor also highlighted the university’s commitment to inclusivity with six visually impaired graduating students.
“This year, six visually impaired undergraduate students (three male and three female) graduated two each from the faculties of Education Law, and Social Sciences,” she said.
