Ebenezer Adurokiya, Reporting
THE University of Ibadan (UI) has been ranked 889th among nearly 19,800 universities worldwide, placing it among the top 4.5 per cent of higher institutions globally and making it the only Nigerian university in the global top 1,000.
The latest ranking by the AD Scientific Index, refreshed on 1 October 2026, also placed the institution 14th in Africa, a position it has maintained across successive editions.
The university’s global position improved by 15 places between mid-August and 1 October 2026, according to a statement released by the Chairman of the Nigerian Tertiary Education Ranking Advisory Committee (NiTERAC), Professor Peter A. Okebukola.
Okebukola described the development as another triumph for Nigerian universities, particularly federal institutions, which he said were making significant progress in global research rankings.
According to him, the executive summary of the latest ranking indicates that Nigerian universities have strengthened their visibility and position in the global research landscape.
He disclosed that Nigeria ranked 48th among 221 countries worldwide and third in Africa, with 384 institutions and 53,580 scientists indexed.
He said the figures made Nigeria the largest of Africa’s three leading research nations in terms of indexed institutions and scientists, adding that federal universities remained central to the country’s research strength.
Okebukola further noted that Nigeria’s representation in the rankings had expanded considerably, with the number of ranked universities increasing from 257 in the 2024 edition to more than 300 in 2026.
He added that the number of Nigerian scientists indexed by the ranking continued to rise throughout 2026.
Highlighting the contributions of individual academics, the NiTERAC chairman said 16 of the 22 Nigeria-based scholars in the national top 25 by citations were affiliated with federal institutions.
Five of the scholars, he noted, were from the University of Ibadan, underscoring the institution’s contribution to Nigeria’s research output.
He also identified Professor Mayowa Owolabi of the University of Ibadan and Shafiu Mohammed as two Nigerian-based federal scholars ranked among the world’s 800 most-cited researchers out of more than 2.6 million indexed scholars.
The development further highlights the University of Ibadan’s position in Nigeria’s higher education and research landscape, with its latest global ranking reinforcing its standing among Africa’s established research institutions.
The statement was issued by the University of Ibadan’s Directorate of Public Communication.
