University of Ibadan Holds Firm at Top in New Ranking

• The AD Scientific Index ranked Nigeria 48th globally and third in Africa, with 384 institutions and 53,580 scientists indexed as of October 1, 2026
• University of Ibadan retained first place in Nigeria and 14th in Africa, making it the only Nigerian university inside the global top 1,000
• Federal universities held at least 8 of Nigeria's top 10 spots, while 16 of the 22 Nigeria-based scholars in the national top 25 by citations work at federal institutions

Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering education in Nigeria and Africa.

Ibadan, Oyo State - The University of Ibadan (UI) has again emerged as Nigeria's best-ranked research university in the latest AD Scientific Index, according to a statement signed by Emeritus Prof. Peter Okebukola, Chairman of the Nigerian Tertiary Education Ranking Advisory Committee (NiTERAC), on Friday, October 2.

As reported by The Punch, the index, refreshed on Thursday, October 1, 2026, placed Nigeria 48th among 221 countries and third in Africa, with 384 institutions and 53,580 scientists captured in the database.

University of Ibadan's global standing

UI climbed from 904th globally in mid-August to 889th by October 1, placing it within the top 4.5 per cent of nearly 19,800 universities worldwide. The institution also held 14th position in Africa and had 1,586 indexed scholars, five of whom appeared among Nigeria's 25 most-cited researchers.

"The University of Ibadan remains the flagship," the report noted.

The University of Nigeria, Nsukka, held second place nationally, followed by the University of Lagos, Obafemi Awolowo University, University of Ilorin, Ahmadu Bello University, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, and Bayero University. The report said at least eight of Nigeria's top 10 positions were held by federal institutions, adding that research strength within that system was becoming more evenly spread across the country.

Mayowa Owolabi of the University of Ibadan was identified as Nigeria's most-cited researcher, with 257,748 citations and a global ranking of 676th among more than 2.6 million indexed researchers. Shafiu Mohammed of Ahmadu Bello University ranked second nationally with 242,300 citations, placing 776th globally, while Olayinka Ilesanmi of the University of Ibadan came third with 185,602 citations.

Nigeria leads Africa in indexed scientists ranking

Nigeria now has more indexed scientists than both South Africa and Egypt, though the figures are spread across a larger number of institutions. The country averages roughly 140 indexed scientists per institution, compared with 267 in South Africa and 387 in Egypt. The number of Nigerian universities in the index grew from 257 in the 2024 edition to more than 300 in 2026, while the total indexed scientists rose from 53,214 in November 2025 to 53,580 by October 2026.

The report cautioned that the growth in scale must now be matched by deeper research quality.

"The task ahead is therefore less about breadth, where Nigeria already leads Africa, and more about deepening research concentration at its strongest universities," it said.

The findings came alongside the 2027 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, which listed 29 Nigerian universities, up from 24 in 2026. Nineteen of those were federal institutions. UI and the University of Lagos held positions in the 801–1000 global band, while Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Ilorin moved into the 1001–1200 band.

The report recommended that Nigerian universities strengthen doctoral training, support highly cited research groups, and expand international collaboration. It also urged NiTERAC to preserve annual ranking data for more reliable long-term comparisons.

"The message from the AD Scientific Index is therefore not one of arrival, but unmistakably one of forward movement," the report concluded.

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UI sends commendation letter to pharmacist

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that a pharmacist reacted on X after receiving a letter of commendation from UI and an invitation to an award ceremony.

The pharmacist, of the Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Technology, expressed delight about the letter as she displayed it.

In the letter, UI's deputy vice-chancellor said her abstract has been selected for consideration at the proposed University-Industry Conference.