The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeri has approved final accreditation for Osun State University, Osogbo, to graduate medical students, placing the institution at par with some of Nigeria’s oldest universities in training capacity.
Receiving the news of the accreditation during a visit by the Registrar of the Council, Prof. Fatimah Kyari, and the accreditation team at the Government House in Osogbo, Governor Ademola Adeleke lauded the development and promised the university more support to attain higher levels of academic excellence.
A statement signed by the governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, and obtained in Osogbo on Saturday, quoted the governor as welcoming the development.
Earlier, Prof. Kyari, who was represented by the Deputy Registrar, Dr. Nnaemeka Nwakanma, commended Adeleke for providing the necessary equipment required for the final accreditation of the College of Medicine of UNIOSUN within a record seven years.
Dr. Nwakanma noted that the governor had been able to take the university to its current enviable position in just three years, culminating in the final accreditation of the state-owned institution.
“This team has just approved and granted final full accreditation to the medical school. It didn’t come easy,” he said.
He added that the council, since its establishment in 1963, had never compromised standards in the regulation of the training of medical personnel capable of competing globally.
He explained that the admission quota approved for UNIOSUN is now 150, placing it at par with the University of Lagos and other major institutions.
“Until three months ago, Obafemi Awolowo University admission quota was 100, which was what was approved for UNIOSUN in 2023. University of Lagos, which was established in the ’60s, has 150 admission quota for medical students till date despite its decades of existence. Sir, the oldest university in Nigeria, the 76-year-old University of Ibadan that was ranked No. 4 in Commonwealth nations in the 70s, has a quota capacity of 180, even though the university limited its capacity to 120,” Nwakanma said.
“The requirements considered in allocating admission quota include manpower, human resources available, capacity of the facilities, laboratories, and the state of facilities in the hospitals, and whether they have what it takes to train students. In a bid to encourage Your Excellency because of your huge investment in tertiary education, especially the medical college, MDCN has not only granted final full accreditation for the College of Medicine in UNIOSUN but has also placed the university at par with the training capacity of the University of Lagos and other big universities you can think of in Nigeria, which is 150,” he continued.
Responding, Adeleke expressed happiness at the accreditation and assured the MDCN team that his administration would continue to support the institution. He promised that the university’s admission capacity for medicine and related courses would double before the next accreditation exercise.
Lamenting the lack of a conducive working environment that has resulted in the brain drain popularly referred to as the “Japa syndrome,” the governor said efforts must be made to reverse the trend.
“When you go to the biggest hospitals in the UK, America and elsewhere in Europe, Nigerians are the best hands you will find there, and it is because there is no conducive working environment for them in Nigeria. But we must work together to reverse the trend,” the governor said.
UNIOSUN has steadily expanded its capacity for medical training over the years, culminating in the establishment of the Modupe and Folorunso Alakija Medical Research and Training Hospital in Osogbo. The hospital was donated by businesswoman and philanthropist, Mrs. Folorunso Alakija, and formally handed over to the university’s management.
According to a statement signed by the university’s Public Relations Officer, Ademola Adesoji, the handover ceremony took place at Famfa Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos. The university delegation, led by the Pro-Chancellor, Prof. Wale Oladipo, and the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Clement Adebooye, visited Alakija, who is also the institution’s Chancellor, for the signing ceremony.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of Famfa Oil, Mr. Dele Alakija, who represented the donor family, expressed gratitude to God and appreciation to the university for its commitment to advancing healthcare and medical education in Nigeria.
