Akwa Ibom State University gets new helmsman
The Akwa Ibom State Government has appointed an acting vice chancellor for its university, with immediate effect. He is Prof. Otoabasi Etim Akpan.
Akpan’s appointment came following the expiration of the tenure of his predecessor, Prof Nse Essien, whose leadership was tainted in its waning days with workers’ strikes, earlier in the month.
Professor Otoabasi Akpan comes into his new office as acting vice chancellor with intimidating academic credentials and experience spanning more than two and a half decades.
Born on 15th June 1964, he comes from Ikot Obio Atai Itam in Itu Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
He earned his bachelors in History from the University of Calabar (UNICAL) in 1984, master’s degree in History of Ideas at the University of Ibadan (1985), and a doctorate in Diplomatic Studies in 2003 from the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).
Between August 1986 and May 1987, Akpan worked as a research assistant to Professor Jan George at the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London.
He worked in the University of Uyo in the Department of History and International Studies for 10 years before joining the services of Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU) in 2013.
At AKSU, Akpan was the pioneer Head of the Department of History and International Studies, the second Dean of the Faculty of Arts, and the pioneer Director of the Directorate of International Collaborations and Linkages, where he facilitated collaborations with the University of Innsbruck, Austria (2018); Temple University, Pennsylvania, United States (2018) and South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Guangzhou, China (2019).
He became the fourth Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) and a key member of the Governing Council in the third dispensation of AKSU.
In his 28 years of teaching, research, and community service within the university system, Akpan has impacted students across Nigeria and beyond. As a visiting professor at the National Defence College and the University of Abuja Leadership Centre, he shared his knowledge and passion with future leaders.
Professor Akpan is a prolific writer and critical thinker who has made a significant impact on history and international studies, particularly in the sub-fields of the History of Ideas and International Security Studies.
He has produced more than 20 academic professors, several ambassadors, and numerous generals, as well as security and intelligence personnel.
Akpan has published 103 articles in reputable journals, book chapters, and conference papers, locally and internationally. In June 2024, he delivered the 5th Inaugural Lecture at AKSU, with the topic “Thinking the Thinkable for Gatekeepers at the Gateways.””
In the past 10 years, Professor Akpan has visited 22 universities to assist with accreditation for the National Universities Commission and also evaluated 18 academics for promotion to the rank of professor.
He is a member of several professional organisations, among which are, the World History Association, the African Studies Association in the United Kingdom, Nigerian Institute of Management, and the African Studies Association in New York.
Akpan has travelled to all continents of the world, except Antarctica. He is the current National President of the College of Professors in Nigeria (COPiN), Dean of Ibibio Academics Rountable, chairman of the Mary Slessor Institute for African Policy Studies, chairman of the Global Society for the Study, Preservation and Promotion of the Cultural Heritage of Africa, Emeritus President of the Pan African Historical Society, Member of Eminent Persons and Experts Group Meeting on Complex Insurgencies in Nigeria.
Professor Otoabasi Akpan is happily married and has five children: three girls and two boys.
