The Chairman, National Universities Ranking Advisory Committee (NURAC), Prof. Peter Okebukola has lauded Nigerian universities for another brilliant outing at the 2025 World University Rankings.
Okebukola said the ranking was released at midnight on Wednesday Oct. 9, in Manchester, UK at the Times Higher Education World Academic Summit.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja on return from the Summit, Okebukola, noted that Nigerian universities did Africa proud and have maintained a winning streak over the last three years.
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According to him, NURAC was established by Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, former Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC) and endorsed by the former Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu.
Providing further details, Okebukola noted that globally, University of Oxford was ranked 1st followed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2nd); Harvard University (3rd); Princeton University (4th) and University of Cambridge (5th).
He listed other ranking as: Stanford University (6th); California Institute of Technology (7th); University of California, Berkeley (8th); Imperial College London (9th) and Yale University (10th).
According to him, Covenant University is the only Nigerian university that made the 1000 best universities in the world grade in the rankings.
” At the Manchester event where the rankings were unveiled, Covenant University was given the thumbs up. It is ranked among the 801-1000 band.
” Covenant University has consistently outpaced all 274 Nigerian universities and most of the universities in the whole of Africa.
” For the purpose of this report, the top 1000 universities are equated as “Band A”. Band B universities classification are those that are ranked between 1000 and 1200.
“Nigeria proudly had four universities in this band- Ahmadu Bello University; Landmark University; University of Ibadan; and University of Lagos; Next are the B and C universities that are ranked between 1201 and 1500,” he said .
Okebukola listed the band B and C as : Bayero University; Federal University of Technology Akure; Federal University of Technology, Minna; University of Benin; University of Ilorin; and University of Nigeria Nsukka.
He said the band D universities had rankings after 1500.
“These are Ekiti State University; Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta; Federal University of Technology, Owerri; Federal University Oye-Ekiti; Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and Lagos State University.
“Nnamdi Azikiwe University; Obafemi Awolowo University; University of Port Harcourt; and Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.
“Universities that are yet to fall into Bands A, B, C and D, that is, qualified for being ranked are in the reporter category. These universities are yet to meet the threshold of having at least 1000 citations for all staff in the university,” he added.
According to Okebukola,” the joy is that these universities are “on the way leading to qualification for ranking.”
He listed other universities in the 2025 World University Rankings to have fell within the reporter category- Abia State University; Akwa Ibom State University; Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike and Ambrose Alli University.
Other are Baze University; Bells University of Technology; Benson Idahosa University; Bowen University; Delta State University, Abraka; Evangel University, Akaeze; Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun and Godfrey Okoye University.
In the list are also Lagos State University of Education; Lagos State University of Science and Technology; Nasarawa State University, Keffi; Niger Delta University; Nile University of Nigeria.
Also in the list are: Osun State University; Rivers State University; Thomas Adewumi University; University of Cross River State; University of Maiduguri; and Veritas University, Abuja.
Okebukola, elaborating on the criteria for ranking, said “Times Higher Education uses 18 carefully calibrated performance indicators to provide the most comprehensive and balanced comparisons, trusted by students, academics, university leaders, industry and governments.
He explained that the performance indicators were grouped into five areas: Teaching (the learning environment); Research environment (volume, income and reputation).
Other area he said were: Research quality (citation impact, research strength, research excellence and research influence); International outlook (staff, students and research); and Industry (income and patents).
Okebukola expressed hope that following the series of workshops being planned by NURAC for Directors of Academic Planning, Nigerian universities would keep climbing up the global league tables.
“As we look ahead to the 2026 World University Rankings, there is an unwavering belief that Nigerian universities are poised to achieve significant improvements and secure higher positions in the global league tables.
“The commitment from academic leadership especially vice-chancellors, government, and key stakeholders to invest in cutting-edge infrastructure for teaching and research is required to make this happen.
“Government should heed the call of staff unions to improve the funding of our public universities, improve staff welfare which is shameful low and incapable of encouraging serious commitment to research,” he said.
