Folasade Ogunsola Becomes First Female Vice Chancellor of UNILAG

Bennett Oghifo and Uchechukwu Nnaike

The governing council of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) yesterday announced the appointment of Folasade Ogunsola, a Professor of Medical Microbiology, as the incoming Vice Chancellor of the university.

Prof. Ogunsola will take over from incumbent Vice Chancellor, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, who served for five years, on November 11, 2022. She will be the first female to hold this position in the nearly 60-year history of the university and its 13th Vice Chancellor.

She emerged the preferred person to be VC out of seven shortlisted candidates that went through a very keen selection process, according to sources familiar with the sober event.

Other shortlisted candidates were: Professors Abayomi Akinyeye of the Department of History, Faculty of Arts; Mathew Ilori and Adeyinka Adekunle both of the Faculty of Sciences; Imran Smith of the Faculty of Law; Timothy Nubi of the Department of Estate Management, Faculty of Environmental Sciences; and Ayo Olowe of the Faculty of Management Sciences.

Ogunsola specialises in disease control, particularly HIV/AIDS, she was provost of College of Medicine, University of Lagos and is reputed as being the first woman to occupy the position. She was also the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Development Services) of the institution between 2017 and 2021. She was elected as the acting vice chancellor of University of Lagos on 24 August 2020, by the university’s senate.

Ogunsola was raised in University of Ibadan where her father, Akin Mabogunje lectured. As a child, she mimicked medical practitioners by using dolls as patients, while offering medical care to them. She attended Queen’s College, Lagos. Between 1974 and 1982, she obtained her first degree from University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) and a master’s degree from College of Medicine, University of Lagos, then proceeded for her doctorate at University of Wales between 1992 and 1997.

She was a founding member of the infection control team during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, and her resume on the website of the Nigerian Society for Infection Control (NSIC), states, “She has been involved in Infection Control for 20 years and contributed significantly in raising awareness of infection Control in Nigeria. She was a founding member of the Nigerian Society for Infection Control (Formerly Nigerian Infection Control Association, NICA) in 1998 and has assisted in setting up infection control programs in institutions in the country.

“She was the Chair of the Infection Control Committee of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital till 2012 and the team lead for Infection Prevention and Control during the 2014 Ebola disease outbreak in Nigeria.

“She has worked as a consultant in IPC with the World Health Organisation since 2009 and is interested in the community applications of Infection Control principles in under-resourced communities.

“She recently with her team wrote a curriculum for a 6 month diploma in Infection Control. She is a member of the Global Infection Prevention and Control Network, board member of the Nigerian Society of Infection Control and Chair of the Infection Control African Network.”