The Institute of African and Diaspora Studies, University of
Lagos (UNILAG), is set to reward Dr. Felix Ajiola with a grant of $1,000 for
emerging the winner of this year’s Rahamon Bello Best Thesis Award.
The award was instituted last year by a former Vice-Chancellor
of the university, Professor Rahamon Bello, for the best PhD thesis in Africa.
Ajiola’s PhD thesis is titled, ‘Cocoa Production and Rural
Development in Idanre, South Western Nigeria (1900 to 1996)’, PhD (2021),
University of Ibadan.
Though he currently teaches History at UNILAG, he obtained
his PhD from the University of Ibadan.
The Deputy Director of the institute, Dr. Feyi
Ademola-Adeoye, who announced this while briefing journalists in Lagos, said
Ajiola defeated 23 others from universities in Nigeria and Africa, to win the
coveted prize.
She said the first runner-up is Dr. Joseph Kunnuji, with
thesis: ‘A Chronicle of Cultural Transformation; Ethnography of Badagry Ogu
Musical Practices’, PhD (2021), Ethnomusicology, University of Cape Town, South
Africa.
The second runner-up, according to her, is Dr. Louis Kusi
Frimpong with thesis: ‘Fear of Crime in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis;
Exploring the Role of the Built Environment and Community Social Organisation’,
PhD (2019), Geography and Resource Development, University
of Ghana, Legon.
She said the prize will be formerly presented to the winner
on December 7 at a ceremony to be attended by members of the jury and other
distinguished personalities.
The first and second runners-up would be presented with
certificates and plaques.
Ademola-Adeoye, explained that the Rahamon Bello Best PhD
Thesis Award was instituted to encourage and appreciate the hard work of
intellectuals, whose PhD thesis address African and diaspora issues.
It also aims at promoting intellectual and
multi-disciplinary research works in African studies.
“A couple of months ago, a call went out for people who
finished their PhD from African universities in the last two years, to apply
for a competition that was being organised in honour of the 11th Vice-
Chancellor of the university, Prof. Rahamon Bello.
“We received a total of 24 entries, that is PhD thesis and
they were limited to fresh holders who must have obtained the degree from 2019
to the time of the announcement,” she said.
She stated that the assessors, drawn from Kenya, Nigeria and
the United Kingdom, worked independently, and in choosing the best three, they
all came together via zoom to harmonise their choices.
“They were unanimous in their choice of the first, second
and even the third place winners.”
The deputy director added that Dr. Adebayo Kudus Oluwatoyin,
a sociologist and research fellow at the Institute of African Studies, also of
the University of Ibadan, won the first edition of the award in 2020.
0 comments:
Post a Comment