Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has approved the appointment of Professor Tomola Obamuyi as the new Vice Chancellor of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, following a competitive selection process that saw the Banking and Finance scholar emerge ahead of 14 other candidates.

The governor's Chief Press Secretary, Ebenezer Adeniyan, announced the appointment in a statement on Friday, confirming that the University's Governing Council recommended Obamuyi after he topped the ranking among 15 contenders interviewed by the Joint Council and Senate Selection Board.

The appointment was made "following the due recommendation of the Governing Council of the Institution, chaired by Dr Tunji Abayomi, in line with the University's Act and extant regulations," the statement noted.

Obamuyi succeeds outgoing Vice Chancellor Professor Olugbenga Ige and brings with him an extensive record in academia and institutional administration. He previously served as Head of the Department of Banking and Finance at AAUA and was the first substantive Dean of the School of Management Technology at the Federal University of Technology, Akure.

In 2015, the Africa Education Leadership Awards in Mauritius named him the Best Professor of Banking and Finance in Africa. He has also served on National Universities Commission programme accreditation teams and as Chairperson and Subject Expert of the Review Panel for Namibia's National Council for Higher Education.

His academic engagements have taken him to Finland, the United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, Ireland, Ghana, Zambia, Uganda, Ethiopia, India, and the United States, where he has presented research papers at international conferences.

Governor Aiyedatiwa expressed confidence that the new Vice Chancellor's experience would consolidate the gains recorded at AAUA and advance the Institution's standing in teaching, research, and community service.

The Governor also urged Obamuyi to uphold the University's core values while fostering peace, innovation, and collaboration among staff, students, and stakeholders, and reaffirmed the Ondo State Government's commitment to supporting AAUA's position among Nigeria's leading State Universities.