The University of Ilorin has introduced Professor Lukman Abdulrauf as its youngest professor, highlighting his contributions to legal scholarship, technology regulation and governance.
According to The Punch, the university disclosed in a statement published on its website on Tuesday that Abdulrauf is a Professor in the Department of Public Law, where his teaching and research focus on the intersection of law, technology and governance.
The institution noted that his areas of specialisation include data privacy, artificial intelligence governance, digital constitutionalism and comparative constitutional law, with particular attention to African legal systems.
The university also highlighted his international academic engagements, stating that Abdulrauf serves as an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Law, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and as a Research Fellow at the Institute for International and Comparative Law in Africa, University of Pretoria.
According to the statement, he previously held research fellowships at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University and the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study in South Africa, where he examined issues relating to digital governance, human rights and institutional development in emerging democracies.
UNILORIN further revealed that Abdulrauf has attracted international research funding, including serving as a Co-Investigator on a project funded by the United States National Institutes of Health, which examined the ethical, legal and social implications of using genomic data in health research across Africa.
The university said his research reflects a broader interest in data governance, public interest regulation and the constitutional impact of digital technologies in developing societies.
Abdulrauf also serves on the editorial board of International Data Privacy Law, a leading journal published by Oxford University Press, and has presented scholarly work at several international conferences on issues such as data privacy, AI governance, platform accountability and technology regulation.
Recently, he completed a fellowship at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Freiburg, Germany, where he conducted research on digital constitutionalism and AI governance in Africa.
Born on February 23, 1987, Abdulrauf was appointed professor on October 1, 2025, at the age of 38, making him the youngest professor currently recognised by the University of Ilorin.