The National Universities Commission (NUC) on November 3, 2025, hosted the official launch of the Africa Centres of Excellence (ACE) Alliance and the Compendium on Key Achievements and Impacts of the ACE Project.
The ACE Alliance represents a new phase of collaboration among Centres across Africa and celebrates a decade of remarkable progress that has strengthened higher education, research, and innovation on the continent.
The launch was performed by the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, in the presence of the current Executive Secretary of the NUC, Professor Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, and former Executive Secretaries Prof. Julius A. Okojie, Prof. Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, and Prof. Munzali Jibril. Also in attendance were representatives of the programme’s key partners and donor agencies, including the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB), Association of African Universities (AAU), French Development Agency (AFD), the Federal Ministry of Education, and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The event was attended by Vice-Chancellors, Centre Leaders, and other key stakeholders from participating universities. The Honourable Minister later led guests on a tour of an exhibition, where the Centres of Excellence showcased their research innovations and practical outcomes – demonstrating how Nigerian institutions are turning knowledge into real-world solutions that strengthen communities and drive economic transformation across the continent.