The eleventh Governing Council of the University, under the chairmanship of Distinguished Senator Dr Olanrewaju Tejuoso, has approved the appointment of Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, as Substantive vice-chancellor of the University.
The appointment was announced during the 80th Extraordinary Meeting of Council on Friday 7 November 2025.
The appointment takes effect from Tuesday 10 February 2026 and is for a nonrenewable tenure of five years.
Professor Fawehinmi is currently the Pioneer Vice-Chancellor of the Nigerian British University, a conventional private University in Abia State.
Meanwhile, the Council has approved the extension of the tenure of the Acting Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Mathew Adamu, till 10th February 2026.
Adamu was first appointed on 11 August 2025 by the Federal Government.
The Council’s decision followed due deliberation during its 80th Extraordinary Meeting on Friday 7 November 2025.
Profile
Prof Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi is a Professor of Clinical Anatomy and Biomedical Anthropology. He is well rooted in the finest academic traditions and has a wealth of experience in Institutional Administration having been Two-time Head of Department of Anatomy (2005 – 2007; 2007 - 2009), Associate Dean (2010 - 2012) and Dean (2012 – 2014) Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences and two terms Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) (2016 – 2020) of the University of Port Harcourt.
He has served in several Statutory and Ad–hoc Committees and Boards, attributes which have equipped him with the requisite skills to provide leadership to a well-informed, articulate and growing academic community.
He has been an active member of his National and International Professional Associations where he served as Secretary-General and Member of National Executive Council of the Nigerian Medical Association Rivers State from 1999 to 2000, Editor–in–Chief of the Journal of Anatomical Sciences and President of the Society of Experimental and Clinical Anatomists of Nigeria (2014-2016).
He has received many Academic and Community Service Awards and Prizes and is a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (FRAI) and Fellow of the Academy of Medicine Specialties of Nigeria (FAMedS).
Prof Fawehinmi has over 100 articles in reputable peer reviewed mostly indexed journals, visible in conventional academic search engines and 37 Conference Abstracts, to his credit
He has participated and served as Resource Person in 78 Conferences, Workshops and Training Programmes in Africa, Europe, the Middle-East and North America. He has supervised over 100 BSc Projects, 15 MSc, 13 PhD / MD Dissertations and Thesis and delivered the 111th Inaugural Lecture of the UniPort in 2014 titled: “Different Tailors for the Same People; Same Surgeon for Different People”.
Fawehinmi has attracted some National and International Competitive Grants as Principal Investigator. His invention won the Federal Government Patent for the Design of the AMRG Anthropometry Chair for Dimensional Body Measurements.
Prof Fawehinmi has been involved in the conceptualization and delivery of several MoUs and partnerships between Town and Gown locally and internationally. He has been External Examiner and Assessor to the Professoriate to almost all the first- and second-generation Universities in including the University of Exeter UK and has led Visitation Panels of the National Universities Commission and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria to several medical schools. The new vice chancellor was recently cited in the 2021 Africa Scientist Rankings by the Alper - Doger Scientific Index.
He is married to Dr. Hadeezat O. Fawehinmi a lecturer with the UniPort and they have 5 children.