A lecturer at the University of Ibadan (UI) in Oyo State, Dr Muhammad Ribadu, has emerged the winner of the 2023 Rahamon Bello Best PhD thesis in African Studies award.

The lecturer will be rewarded with $ 1000, a plaque, and a certificate.

The Director of the Institute of African and Diaspora Studies (IADS), University of Lagos (UNILAG), Prof. Muyiwa Falaiye, made this known in a statement issued on Thursday.

Falaiye said a total of 18 entries for the fourth edition of the competition were received from various universities in Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa

He gave the title of the winning thesis as ‘The Social Context of Gentrification in Lagos State; PhD (January 2023) Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan’.

READ ALSO: Varsity lecturer found dead in apartment

He added: “The first runner up for this competition was Oluwaseyi Popogbe, currently a lecturer at the Department of Economics, Crawford University in Ogun.

“The title of his thesis is Social Exclusion and Poverty in Selected Coastal Slum Areas in Lagos State; PhD (December 2022) Department of Economics University of Lagos.

“The second runner up position went to Dr Charles Akwen, currently a lecturer at the Department of English, University of Lagos.

“Akwen’s thesis is titled Notions of Identity in the Literary Creativity of Odia Ofeimun and Yang Mu; PhD (December 2022) English Literature, University of Lagos.”

The IADS director noted that both the first and second runners up would be awarded plaques and certificates in recognition of their contributions and hard work.

Falaiye noted that the competition was in honour of Prof. Rahamon Bello, who was the 10th Vice-Chancellor of the university, at the time the institute was inaugurated.

The prize money is usually donated every year for the award by friends of Bello.

Falaiye added that December 6 has been fixed for the presentation of the awards.

The Star