Professor Ayo Banjo, former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, has passed away at the age of 90. He died early in the morning on Friday, May 24, shortly after celebrating his 90th birthday on May 2.
Prof. Banjo was a major figure in Nigerian academia, renowned for his contributions to the English Language curriculum and the promotion of Nigerian varieties of English. His illustrious career included roles as the Chairman of the Board of the National Universities Commission and Pro-Chancellor of the Universities of Port Harcourt, Ilorin, and Ajayi Crowther.
Born into an educational family in Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State, Banjo began his academic journey at St. Andrew Anglican Primary School before completing his primary education in Lagos. He attended Igbobi College, Lagos, for his secondary education from 1947 to 1952.
In 1959, after excelling at the Nigeria College of Arts, Science, and Technology, Ibadan, Banjo was awarded the British Council Scholarship to study at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, where he earned a Master of Arts in English Language. He furthered his education with a Post-Graduate Diploma in Education and English Studies at the University of Leeds, England, graduating with distinction.
His academic pursuits continued in the United States, where he was awarded a scholarship by the American State Department to study for a Master of Arts in Linguistics at the University of California, Los Angeles. He completed his Ph.D. in English Language at the University of Ibadan in 1969.
Professor Banjo’s career spanned several countries, and he was instrumental in developing educational materials, including English course books and Oxford dictionaries. His tenure at the University of Ibadan was marked by his roles as Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Acting Vice-Chancellor, and eventually Vice-Chancellor, a position he held for seven years, making him the longest-serving Vice-Chancellor in the university’s history.
After completing his term as Vice-Chancellor in 1991, Banjo returned to teaching, demonstrating his lifelong commitment to education. He retired in 1994 after a distinguished career marked by over 55 publications and significant contributions to primary and secondary education in Nigeria.