NUC Boss Urges ACE Project Beneficiaries To Focus On Sustainability

The Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, has urged beneficiary institutions of the Africa Centres of Excellence (ACE) project in Nigeria to look beyond donor support and focus on the project’s sustainability.

Ribadu stated this at the pre-closure retreat for the ACE Impact Project held in Abuja on Wednesday.

He hailed the ACE-Impact initiative, noting that it had elevated Nigeria’s academic institutions into globally competitive hubs of knowledge generation, innovation, and development.

He emphasised that the centres must transition from temporary project status into “permanent institutional assets” while urging vice-chancellors and centre leaders to solidify their sustainability strategies.

Ribadu also urged them to secure diversified funding sources and entrench governance frameworks that attract both public and private investment.

“This project has empowered our universities and contributed significantly to regional integration and internationalisation.

“ACE Centres have produced high-quality master’s and PhD graduates, secured international accreditations, attracted major external funding, and driven innovation across key sectors such as health, agriculture, STEM, and education.

“This is not the end but the beginning of a new phase of responsibility. We must scale up the gains of the past decade and ensure these centres remain engines of growth and regional leadership,” he said.

Also speaking, the National Project Coordinator of the project in Nigeria, Joshua Attah, revealed that the project, with 17 centres, had earned $89.1 million through the achievement of Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs).

Attah also stated that the project has generated additional funding of over N3.2bn, $24.9m, €1.77m, and £589,000 from local and international sources.

He emphasised that the ACE centres have been pivotal in training master’s and PhD students, including a growing number of foreign scholars, marking a revival in Nigeria’s regional academic leadership.

Attah explained that the ACE impact had expanded the initiative to 53 centres across 11 countries, with Nigeria hosting the highest number, having 17 Centres of Excellence.

“These centres cover strategic areas such as maternal and child health, cybersecurity, sustainable power, dryland agriculture, food security, and digital science.

“They have collectively positioned Nigeria at the forefront of academic excellence and development-driven research on the continent,” he added.

He noted that the project has recorded a total enrolment of 33,347 students, comprising both national and regional students. Among these are 924 regional students and 6,129 national students, with 6,945 students pursuing advanced degrees.

Also speaking on the project achievement, Director of the African Centre of Excellence for Genomic Infectious Diseases (ACEGID) at Redeemer’s University, Prof. Christian Happi, emphasised that the success of the ACE programme lies not only in scientific achievement but in its regional integration.

Happi said it has also attracted international grants and students, which is a hallmark of a sustainable and internationally respected academic model.

Corroborating this, Prof. Ibiyemi Bilola Olatunji-Bello, Vice-Chancellor, Lagos State University (LASU), highlighted the success of the university’s own ACE project, the Centre of Excellence in STEM Education

“Our centre has helped us gain international accreditation and elevated LASU’s global academic standing. We’ve trained graduates from across Africa, including Gambia, Sierra Leone, Niger, and Gabon,” she said.

The ACE initiative is backed by the World Bank and regional governments.

NUC Boss Urges ACE Project Beneficiaries To Focus On Sustainability is first published on The Whistler Newspaper