The Governing Council of the University of Abuja, now renamed Yakubu Gowon University, has approved the appointment of Hakeem Fawehinmi as the new substantive vice-chancellor of the university.
The decision was taken at the Council’s 80th Extraordinary Meeting held on Friday, 7 November, under the chairmanship of Olanrewaju Tejuoso, a senator.
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The university’s acting director of information, Habib Yakoob, in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES said the appointment takes effect from 10 February 2026 for a single, non-renewable tenure of five years.
Mr Fawehinmi, a professor of Clinical Anatomy and Biomedical Anthropology, currently serves as the vice-chancellor of the Nigerian British University, Asa, Abia State.
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His appointment comes after months of interim leadership at the institution, following controversies surrounding the appointment of the former VC, Aisha Maikudi.
In the meantime, the Council approved the extension of the tenure of the acting vice-chancellor, Mathew Adamu, until 10 February 2026. Mr Adamu was first appointed on 11 August 2025 by the federal government.
Profile of Hakeem Fawehinmi
Mr Fawehinmi, a professor, is a scholar of Clinical Anatomy and Biomedical Anthropology with decades of teaching, research, and administrative experience.
At the University of Port Harcourt, where he spent most of his academic career, he served in several leadership positions, including Head of the Department of Anatomy (2005–2009), Associate Dean (2010–2012), Dean of the Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences (2012–2014), and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) (2016–2020).
He has also served on multiple statutory and ad hoc committees, gaining extensive experience in governance, academic planning, and institutional reform.
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He is an active member of several professional associations and has served as President of the Society of Experimental and Clinical Anatomists of Nigeria (2014–2016) and Secretary-General of the Nigerian Medical Association, Rivers State (1999–2000).
He is a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (FRAI) and the Academy of Medicine Specialties of Nigeria (FAMedS).
His academic footprint includes over 100 peer-reviewed publications and 37 conference abstracts indexed in leading research databases. He has participated in over 70 international conferences and training programmes across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and North America.
In 2014, he delivered the 111th Inaugural Lecture of the University of Port Harcourt, titled “Different Tailors for the Same People; Same Surgeon for Different People.”
Mr Fawehinmi has attracted several national and international research grants and holds a federal government patent for his design of the AMRG Anthropometry Chair, a tool for dimensional body measurement.
He has also been involved in establishing partnerships between universities and industries, both within and outside Nigeria.
As an external examiner and assessor, he has served several first and second-generation Nigerian universities and was cited in the 2021 Africa Scientist Rankings by the Alper-Doger Scientific Index.
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