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On October 21, 2002, the African educational landscape was radically altered by the formal entry of Covenant University (CU) into the Higher Education context. Covenant University is located in Canaan Land, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria. Covenant University is a growing, dynamic, vision-birthed and vision-driven University, founded on a Christian mission ethos and committed to pioneering excellence at the cutting edge of learning.
Our Core Values of Spirituality, Possibility Mentality, Capacity Building, Integrity, Responsibility, Diligence and Sacrifice define our commitment to excellence. Covenant University is committed to transforming students into expert thinkers, innovative managers and resourceful technocrats in all fields of learning.
The total student population for the 2010 /2011 academic session is 7,521, with 393 academic staff and 518 non-academic staff. The context of Covenant University is morally and spiritually-uplifting, with a stable academic calendar, a well-stocked library, state-of-the-art laboratories and an excellent road network. Our Mandate is to pioneer excellence in teaching, research, community impact and scholarship.
The University campus is an ultra modern campus and is fully residential for both staff and students with ample opportunities for informal interaction between Faculty and students, thereby creating a special ambience of living and learning together. It is quite enabling and conducive for international faculty and students.
The University is equipped with a network computer base in excess of 1000, over 8,000 personal laptop computers enabled by wireless hot spots /Internet access, a myriad of lecture halls, theatres and laboratories equipped with high-tech electronic boards providing adequate facilities for Teaching and Research along the lines of the current 33 programmes in the University's two Colleges of Development Studies and Science & Technology.
All the University’s academic programmes are accredited by the apex regulatory body for University education in Nigeria, the National Universities Commission (NUC), which rated the University the overall best in the nationwide accreditation exercise in 2005. The University’s programmes are also accredited by the relevant professional regulatory bodies.
The University's unique Total Man Concept and Entrepreneurial Development Studies driven curricula imbue in our students practical life skills and an entrepreneurial spirit which have been acknowledged in the labour market. Our special graduation preparatory programme, Towards A Total Graduate (TTG) is also designed to specially package the student for the world of work upon graduation, as an agent of change, set to take charge of his environment and break the barriers of limitation confronting our nation and continent at large. Reports reaching the University from the employers of our graduates have been very encouraging. Spread across the nation and overseas countries, the University's graduates have been performing extremely well in the banking sector, industries, politics and academic settings while some of them have become employers of labour, thus helping to address the unemployment challenges in our nation.
Covenant University has robust linkage and collaborative partnerships with some Universities and institutions outside the country. The University has Faculty/ student exchange and research collaboration with Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, U.S.A; Minnesota State University, Mankato, USA; Donetsk National Technical University, Ukraine; International Centre for Information Technology & Development Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA and the Information and Communication Technology University, Prairieville, Louisiana, USA etc.
The University's efforts in entrenching a rich academic and research culture have continued to be validated in the external context of the University. Within about nine years of its existence, Covenant University has been recognized both locally and internationally as a centre of excellence.
In May 2005, the apex regulatory body for University education in Nigeria, the National Universities Commission (NUC) rated the University the overall best in the nationwide accreditation exercise that year. The University also emerged Best Private University in Nigeria (2005). According to the then Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Peter Okebukola, CU ranked top among the then 23 private Universities in the country in terms of quality programmes. In January 2006, the Vice Chancellor, Professor Aize Obayan, was adjudged the Best Vice Chancellor of Private Universities in Nigeria for 2005. A survey also conducted by NUC and reported in the Punch Newspaper of Wednesday, October 5, 2005, also rated the University as the Most Preferred University among the private universities in the country by candidates seeking University admission through the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB). Other awards include Best ICT-Driven University (2007), Private University with Most Improved ICT Programme and Facilities by the Commonwealth Scholarship Prize and Awards (CSPA 2007) and Fastest Growing Private University in Nigeria Award at the Education Times Award of Excellence 2008. Also recently, the University was adjudged the Best Private University 2009 at the Education Watch Awards and the Best ICT-Driven University of the Year 2009 at the National ICT Merit Awards and in 2010, Best ICT-Driven University in West Africa Award.
Covenant University is the first Private University in Nigeria to become a member of the Commonwealth Association of Universities and admitted into membership of Commonwealth Education Partnership, which provides, amongst other benefits, an international leverage and exposure for the linkage and collaborations with 53 Commonwealth Member countries.
Between 2007 and 2010, Covenant University has produced ten Grantees of United States (Public Affairs Section)-sponsored Fellowship/Fulbright Scholar in addition to hosting two Fulbright Scholars in Residence from the United States.
From the very beginning, Covenant University set out to be a research University. It has directed its efforts towards providing solution to the myriad challenges in Africa by investing in cutting-edge research, leading to products and patents. In 2010 for example, three (3) certificates of patents were awarded to the University by the National Office for Technological Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), Abuja, for three products “Paw-paw Beverage”, “Fermented Rice” and “Culture Medium” from the staple of Bio-Technology Research cluster lead by Professor Louis Egwari. They were the first to be registered in the country in that year as at June 2010.To facilitate patenting by staff and external researchers, NOTAP has commissioned an IPTTO office in Covenant University Centre for Research and Development (CUCERD) where investors can process their patents applications
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Covenant University is making enviable marks in cutting-edge research in the area of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology where it has robust research clusters in addition to driving an active research agenda across all the departments in the University.
Covenant University Interest in Malaria Research
Covenant University’s interest in Malaria research dates back as far as 2005 when it hosted the first-ever International Conference and Workshop on Bioinformatics in Africa, which attracted researchers from all over the world. The University has subsequently hosted other conferences and workshops on Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, aimed at finding lasting a solution to malaria pandemic in Africa. Its first inaugural lecture, titled: ‘Code Malaria: Eradication Development for the Decade’ delivered by the leader of Bioinformatics Cluster in CU, Professor Ezekiel Adebiyi, was also a landmark contribution in malaria research from the University platform.
The overall goal of Covenant University’s interest in malaria research is to produce two effective high tech products for the control and final eradication of malaria in Africa starting with Nigeria. The malaria parasite needs man and the mosquito to continue surviving. Therefore, the first targeted product, a cuisine of antimalarial drugs (design and production cost is expected to be cheap, to enhance large scale usage possibility) is to allow rapid cure of malaria in humans. This is to reduce to zero the chance of an uninfected mosquito to be infected after a bite. The second targeted product, an advanced but human friendly pesticide DDT (a cocktail of agents) is to help delete rapidly all malaria infected mosquitoes. In another front, we are considering the application of Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) to eradicate malaria infected mosquitoes. For example, SIT has been applied successfully against tsetse flies, fruit flies and screwworm. Currently, mathematical models are been developed to optimize deployment and conduct risk-assessment prior to an actual release of sterile mosquitoes.
The expected result of the successful execution and application of our work will make Nigeria and eventually Africa, free of malaria-infected humans and mosquitoes like the western world.
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