University Eyes Africa’s Growth Opportunities, Deepens Focus

The University of Reading has identified Africa’s growing population, expanding economic opportunities and increasing South-South trade as key drivers of its next phase of global engagement, as the institution marked its 100th anniversary in Lagos.

The university, which recently celebrated its centenary, used the Nigerian leg of its global anniversary programme to reaffirm its commitment to the country and unveil plans to deepen its presence across Sub-Saharan Africa.

The centenary celebration and awards evening brought together university leaders, alumni, business executives and other stakeholders to celebrate the institution’s century-long journey and its growing links with Africa.

The event also provided an opportunity to honour outstanding alumni and highlight the university’s ambition to make Africa a major hub of its global strategy.

Delivering the University of Reading Centenary Address, Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean & Director, Henley Business School Africa, Jon Foster-Pedley, said the decision to hold the Nigerian leg of the centenary celebration in Lagos was deliberate.

“This centenary started in India. It went through the UK, then Malaysia, Thailand and China. Tonight it’s in Lagos, and it finishes in December in Southern Africa.

“You can tell what a university has become by where it chooses to have its birthday. We chose to have ours across the world, and we chose to have this part of it in Nigeria.”

The University of Reading received its Royal Charter on March 17, 1926, having evolved from institutions with roots dating back to 1892.

The university has since grown into a global research institution with more than 21,000 students and over 300,000 alumni worldwide.

Henley Business School, the business school of the University of Reading, was founded in 1945 and has developed an extensive international footprint, including more than three decades of engagement in Africa.

Foster-Pedley said the relationship between Henley Business School and the University of Reading was becoming increasingly integrated, combining academic expertise with practical business leadership.

“Henley is Reading, and Reading is Henley. One university, one standard, one mission: to build the people who build the businesses and organisations that build Africa,” he said.

He said the university’s international strategy was focused on regions experiencing significant economic transformation, including Malaysia, China, India, the Nordic countries and Africa.

According to him, Africa’s projected population growth would make the continent increasingly important to global economic development, noting that Africa would account for about a quarter of the world’s population by 2050.

He also pointed to the growing economic significance of trade among countries in the Global South, saying the trend presented significant opportunities for Africa and other emerging economies.

“Put those together. Trade between the countries of the South passed six trillion dollars last year; it is now more than a quarter of all world trade.

 

 

 

“The growth of this century is in the middle countries and in the South, working with each other. The greatest opportunities of the next fifty years will emerge where those countries meet.”

 

 

 

Foster-Pedley said the University of Reading would not only continue to welcome Nigerian students to its campuses abroad but would increasingly bring its expertise and programmes to Nigeria.

 

 

 

“We are widening what we offer Nigeria, not narrowing it,” he said.

 

 

 

He said the university would work with Nigerian partners to develop programmes targeted at managers and professionals already carrying significant responsibilities, further strengthening its contribution to business and leadership development in the country.

 

 

 

Foster-Pedley also highlighted the institution’s sustainability scholarships, expressing hope that more Nigerians would benefit from the initiative.

 

 

 

Concluding his address, he described the centenary as an opportunity for the university to build on its achievements while adapting to the demands of the future.

 

 

 

“A hundred years is a good age for a university. Old enough to know what it’s for. Young enough to change how it goes about it. Now let’s get on with the next hundred years, together,” he said.

 

 

 

The celebration also featured a keynote address by the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Creative Officer of X3M Ideas, Steve Babaeko, who challenged University of Reading alumni to combine formal education with creativity, resilience and practical leadership.

 

 

 

Babaeko, a Henley alumnus and visiting fellow, reflected on his leadership journey and argued that global business education could be successfully applied within the African environment.

 

 

 

“What I understand now that I did not understand then is that world-class rigour and African relevance are not opposites. You can have both in the same room,” he said.

 

 

 

According to him, Nigeria’s creativity remained one of its greatest strengths, but the country needed stronger institutions and leadership to convert entrepreneurial ideas into sustainable organisations.

 

 

 

“Our problem has always been the next part. Turning that raw genius into something that lasts. Something with structure. Something that survives the founder,” Babaeko said.

 

 

 

He urged alumni to deploy their education, experience and influence to support the next generation of Nigerian entrepreneurs and professionals.

 

 

 

“We have the education and we have the instinct. That is a rare and powerful combination. We are not meant to sit at the top and admire the view. We are meant to reach down and pull the next ones up.”

 

 

 

Also speaking at the event, the Head of the Henley Business School Nigeria Alumni Association, Paul Orajiaka, expressed delight at the centenary celebration, saying the quality and diversity of award recipients demonstrated the impact of the school’s alumni on Nigerian society.

 

 

 

“As the Head of the School’s Nigeria alumni association, I’m very delighted with today’s event as this shows the impact the school’s alumni are making in Nigerian society, with the quality of awardees recognised tonight from different sectors of the economy,” Orajiaka said.

 

 

 

According to him, the achievements of the alumni were a testament to the institution’s emphasis on more than academic excellence.

 

 

 

“This is a testament of the school’s training of her students in not just academics but also in leadership and values.”

 

 

 

Orajiaka also expressed appreciation to the visiting delegation from the University of Reading, led by Foster-Pedley, for attending the centenary event in Lagos.

 

 

 

“Very grateful to the visiting team from the school, led by Pro-Vice Chancellor Jon Foster-Pedley, to this August event.”

 

 

 

He said the Henley Business School Nigeria alumni chapter was looking forward to strengthening its relationship with the institution and expanding collaboration that would contribute to economic development.

“Looking forward to greater collaboration between the school and our local chapter, in building the people, who build the businesses that build Nigeria in particular and Africa in general,” Orajiaka said.

The university also recognised notable alumni for their achievements across various sectors.