Ex-JAMB registrar tasks Kwara varsities on solutions to socio-economic challenges
August 14, 2026 12:54 am
Ishaq Oloyede
The immediate past Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has urged universities in Kwara State to become the “developmental brain box” of the state by providing research-driven solutions to its socio-economic challenges.
Oloyede, who is the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Consortium of Universities in Kwara State, KU8+, made the call on Friday at the opening ceremony of the fourth KU8+ Conference held at Summit University, Offa.
Arewa PUNCH reports that the conference, which brought together university administrators, academics, researchers, policymakers, government officials, industry leaders and other stakeholders, focused on strengthening collaboration, research, innovation and societal impact in the higher education sector.
Speaking at the event, Oloyede said universities should not limit their roles to teaching and awarding degrees but should actively contribute to policymaking and the development of practical solutions to challenges confronting their host communities.
“Universities should be positioned to anticipate emerging challenges and help governments prepare for the future through research, innovation and evidence-based recommendations,” he said.
He continued, “They must remain apolitical and play a sanitising role by providing objective advice to governments and helping to formulate policies capable of promoting sustainable development.”
Recalling his tenure as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, Oloyede disclosed that he once declined an appointment as a presiding officer during a national election because of his conviction that universities must remain neutral.
He maintained that universities must remain neutral so they could serve as credible mediators whenever political actors disagreed.
Oloyede also challenged the KU8+ institutions to leverage their collective expertise and the concentration of agricultural research institutions in Kwara State to transform the state’s agricultural sector.
According to him, “Agricultural and Rural Management Training Institute, Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute, Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority, National Centre for Agricultural Mechanisation, Faculty of Agriculture and Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies among federal institutions in the state have mandates relevant to agriculture and rural development.
“Agriculture is one of Kwara’s major economic strengths. I want to urge the universities in the state to establish stronger partnerships with the institutions and develop innovative solutions capable of improving agricultural productivity, food security and economic growth,” he said.
Oloyede also challenged the universities to deploy research and innovation towards reviving some of the state’s moribund industries.
He cited Bacita Sugar Company, Jebba Paper Mill and the Tobacco Company as examples of major industries whose collapse had affected the state’s industrial and economic fortunes.
The ex-JAMB boss remarked, “I urge the universities to research new opportunities around such industries and explore ways of reinventing Kwara’s economy.
“Universities should not merely react to problems after they emerged but should generate ideas and solutions that would enable governments and communities to prepare adequately for future challenges.”
He commended the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ilorin and Chairman of KU8+, Prof. Wahab Egbewole, SAN, for initiating the consortium.
However, he clarified that he was not the founder of KU8+, contrary to claims in some quarters.
Oloyede explained that although the University of Ilorin pioneered collaborative initiatives such as AWAU and U6+ during his tenure as Vice-Chancellor, KU8+ was conceived under the administration of Egbewole.
Also speaking, the Olofa of Offa, Oba Mufutau Gbadamosi Esuwoye II, congratulated the organisers of the conference and described KU8+ as a commendable initiative capable of redefining collaboration among universities in the state.
The monarch said the coming together of university leaders demonstrated that collective efforts could produce greater results than individual pursuits.
He expressed optimism that the consortium’s shared programmes and initiatives would help Kwara State produce some of the best students in Nigeria.
The Vice-Chancellor of Summit University, Offa, Prof. Abiodun Aibinu, welcomed participants to the conference and expressed appreciation to the consortium for selecting the institution to host the 2026 conference.
He reaffirmed the university’s commitment to research, innovation, academic excellence and strategic partnerships capable of producing solutions to national and global challenges.
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ilorin and Chairman of KU8+, Egbewole, described the consortium as a strategic alliance established to reposition higher education through collective action, knowledge sharing and impactful collaboration, saying universities could no longer afford to work in isolation if they were to respond effectively to emerging societal needs.
During the remarks of the Chairman of the occasion and Commandant, Navy College of Health Sciences, Offa, Commodore Ogbeche Ochagu, he commended KU8+ for promoting partnerships among universities, urging the institutions to sustain collaborative initiatives capable of translating education, research and innovation into practical responses to Nigeria’s developmental challenges.
Delivering the keynote address, former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Emeritus Professor Peter A. Okebukola, challenged African universities to move beyond consuming artificial intelligence technologies and begin creating solutions that address the continent’s peculiar needs.
Okebukola urged the KU8+ Consortium to establish an AI hub that would bring scholars and experts from different disciplines together to develop AI tools tailored to various fields.
He argued that the initiative could strengthen research, generate practical solutions to societal problems and position the consortium as a pace-setter in AI development in Nigeria and Africa.
Meanwhile, an Emeritus Professor of Science Education, Olugbemiro Jegede, called on members of KU8+ to deepen academic collaboration by introducing a credit transfer system that would allow students to move seamlessly among member institutions.
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