The American University of Nigeria (AUN) will graduate its 10th class including potential, budding entrepreneurs at a Commencement Ceremony scheduled for Saturday, May 19, at its main campus in Yola, the Adamawa State capital.
The Chief Executive and co-Founder of Flutterwave, Mr. Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, is this year’s keynote speaker. Flutterwave is an intercontinental payments technology company.
Another Nigerian, a Rhodes Scholar and leading investment banker, Ike Chioke, of Afrinvest West Africa Limited, played a similar role at last year’s graduation. Mr. Chioke belongs to the AUN Board of Trustees charged with projects.
Over the years, AUN has had commencement speakers of international renown. The list includes Archbishop Desmond Tutu (2009), Dr. Haroun Adamu (2010), then EU Ambassador to Nigeria Dr. David MacRae (2011), Dr. Robert A. Pastor (2012), veteran civil rights champion Ms. Charlayne Hunter-Gault (2013), Ambassador John Simon (2014), Colombian educator Vicky Colbert (2015), and Dr. Mustapha Abiodun Akinwunmi, a former commissioner for finance in Lagos State (2016).
With his Flutterwave, Mr. Aboyeji connects Africa to the global economy with one Application Program Interface (API) for processing payment across the continent.
The young entrepreneur has also received other accolades to his credit.
They include World Economic Forum Global Shaper (2012) and Forbes 30 under 30 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs in Africa (2015).
Side attractions in the 2018 Commencement package include a formal presidential inauguration of Dr. Dawn Dekle who assumed leadership of AUN mid-2017 as the fourth substantive President. Board of Trustees member and ninth President of Marlboro College, Vermont, the United States, Dr. Kevin F. F. Quigley, will give the inauguration remarks during the ceremony.
Dr. Quigley is an internationally recognized leader and educator who leads a progressive liberal arts college modeled on the Oxford-Cambridge system of seminars and tutorials.
In the Fall of 2012, Quigley was the guest speaker at AUN’s first-ever Convocation & Pledge Ceremony, where he gave a fiery speech inspiring the matriculants to embrace service as sacrifice for community, country, and continent.
Unveiling the lineup of commencement events, the Vice President for University Relations, Abubakar Abba Tahir, said the university feels honored to have these guests accept its invitations.
“As a learning community, we are deeply honored to have Mr. Aboyeji as our Commencement Speaker and are excited to have Dr. Quigley give the President’s inauguration remarks.”
On the eve of the ceremony, there will be a banquet to present graduation awards to deserving students by corporate sponsors. This event publicly recognizes and celebrates the accomplishments of the graduating seniors. Before then, on May 17, all graduating members of the AUN Honor Society will be invited for an award banquet. These students are the crème de la crème of the graduating class.
Founded in 2004, American University of Nigeria was created to be Africa’s first Development University whose mission is to promote service learning and to educate leaders who will be prepared to tackle the development issues of Nigeria and Africa.
The University offers an American-style education modeled after the curriculum of American universities, using the latest in Internet technology and e-learning resources.
