By Peter Omopo
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Dr Makoji Stephen as the new Rector of Federal Polytechnic Ugep in Cross River State.
The appointment takes effect from March 17, 2026, and will run for a single five-year tenure in accordance with the provisions of the Polytechnic Act 2019 as amended.
Education stakeholders say the move is aimed at repositioning the institution through strengthened administration, global research exposure and enhanced human capital development.
Prior to his appointment, Dr Stephen was a Chief Lecturer in the Department of Public Administration at Federal Polytechnic, Idah. He also served as an Adjunct Faculty member in the Department of Public Policy and Administration at Miva Open University, Nigeria.
Dr Stephen obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration with Second Class Upper Division from Ahmadu Bello University in 1998. He later earned a Master of Science in Public Administration from Benue State University before proceeding to the United Kingdom, where he obtained a Master of Science in Human Resource Management from the University of Salford in 2009.
In 2016, he completed a PhD in Business and Management with specialisation in Human Resource Management at the University of Salford Business School as a Tertiary Education Trust Fund scholar.
His academic career also includes international engagements. In 2011, he was a fully funded visiting researcher at Southern University’s International Centre for Information Technology and Development in the United States. In 2013, he received a Graduate Scholar Award at the Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change Management hosted by the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, in recognition of his academic achievement and leadership.
Dr Stephen is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management in the United States, the Nigerian Institute of Training and Development, and the Manchester Industrial Relations Society in the United Kingdom.
Observers believe his background in public administration, business management and human resource development will strengthen institutional governance, improve academic standards and enhance industry collaboration at Federal Polytechnic Ugep. They add that the appointment aligns with the administration’s drive to promote merit-based leadership and boost global competitiveness in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
