AATU appoints 47-year-old Olayemi Olaniyi as first substantive vice-chancellor
Abdulrasaq Abubakar Toyin University (AATU) has appointed Olayemi Olaniyi, a professor of computer engineering, as its first substantive vice-chancellor.
According to a statement signed by Emmanuel Obafemi, registrar of the university, Olaniyi’s appointment was approved by the AATU’s board of trustees (BoT) and ratified at its third meeting held on September 4, 2026.
The registrar added that the appointment took effect from the same date.
Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, pro-chancellor and chairman of the governing council, described the appointment as a well-considered decision.
Na’Allah said Olaniyi is expected to bring his administrative and academic experience to the management of the university and work with the council to improve institutional efficiency and development.
Olaniyi, 47, is a professor of computer engineering with about two decades of academic experience in computer security, intelligent and embedded systems, applied medical informatics and open distance learning.
He obtained a national diploma in computer technology from the Federal Polytechnic, Offa; a Bachelor of Technology and PhD in computer science and engineering (computer security) from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso; and an MSc in electronic and computer engineering, with distinction, from Lagos State University (LASU).
He began his academic career at Bells University of Technology, Ota, before joining the Federal University of Technology, Minna, where he became a professor of computer engineering in 2021.
Olaniyi has held several administrative positions, including deputy dean of the School of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and head of the department of computer Engineering at FUT Minna.
Until his appointment, he was dean of the faculty of computing at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).
The university said Olaniyi has more than 195 academic publications and has attracted research grants exceeding N350 million.
He is a member of the Nigerian Computer Society, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), and the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), where he is a registered computer engineer.
