Glorious Pen-Down For Prof Esther Oluwafunmilayo Adegbite- “An institution within the university”
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First left is Professor Emeritus Oluwafunmilay Esther Adegbite, being honourably pulled out from the Senate of the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos State, Nigeria
The Professor of banking and finance in the Department of Finance, at the Faculty of Management Sciences at the renowned University of Lagos, Prof. (Mrs) Oluwafunmilayo Esther Adegbite, nee Kola Akinlade, has been formally pulled out of the University of Lagos Senate on Wednesday, 31st July, 2024.
The emotion-laden event, which took place at the university auditorium, had appreciable members of the senate present and other members of the university community to witness the modest occasion, which was presided over by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development Services), DVC, Professor Ayo Atsenuwa.
Professor Ayo Atsenuwa described Professor Adegbite as “an institution within the University”.
According to a report by the official news bulletin of Unilag, the DVC was quoted as congratulating “the retired member of the Senate for her illustrious service to the University, and contributions to the body of knowledge”.
Responding, Prof Adegbite seized the occasion to admonish fellow researchers, lecturers, scholars, and the entire staff of the University to embrace their roles as divinely ordered and to, henceforth, see themselves as destiny shapers to many youthful and puerile students under their care by moulding their future for what is virtuous.
The septuagenarian enthused, “What we are building is more than a house. We are building destinies. We are watching over generations yet unborn. This is a serious assignment. We should be destiny promoters, in moulding the young minds for optimal success.”
The erudite Professor of banking and finance, Oluwafunmilayo Esther Adegbite, nee Kola Akinlade, was born in Ilaro, in the then Egbado Divisional Council, now Yewa South Local Government Area of Ogun State, on the 16th of August 1954.
She was the second child and still is, of late Pa Elijah Kolade Alamu Akinlade, a distinguished author with over ninety published books and an accomplished Yoruba detective novelist. Young Oluwafunmilayo’s mother was late Mrs Agbeke Elizabeth Kola Akinlade. A woman of immeasurable virtues and a stickler for all that is fair, just, humane and equity.
The young scholar gained admission to the prestigious Queens School Ede, now Osun state in 1966, for her secondary education. She had grade 1 (one) in her West African Schools Certificate Examination, WASC, Ordinary Level, O/L, which she completed in 1970. She immediately proceeded for her Higher School Certificate, HSC, in the same school which had then relocated to Moore Plantation, Apata Ganga, Ibadan.
She completed the HSC course in record time, and in flying colours too. She scored the highest grade/the best result in the entire Western State of Nigeria.
Hence, she bagged an automatic scholarship which neither her parents, nor the student applied for. But the sane system then in existence automatically awarded her the scholarship on merit, which saw her through the first degree program, at the world-class, and African best university of Ibadan, in 1973.
Professor Adegbite graduated with a First Degree and Masters Degree in Economics from the University of Ibadan, in 1976 and 1978 respectively. She won the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) award which led to the commencement of her Ph.D. program in 1991 and completion in 1994.
Adegbite started her teaching career as an Assistant Lecturer in the University of Lagos in 1982, and grew through the ranks to become a Professor in 2010. She had served the University in various capacities including Chairperson of UNILAG Ventures, and UNILAG Anti-Sexual Harassment Committee, among others.
Outside the University, She is a Board Member of the Redeemer’s College of Technology and Management (RECTEM) as well as a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers Capacity Building and Certification Committee (CBC).
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