By – Ogunyemi Victor

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Kayode Adebowale, on Thursday, June 20, 2024, spoke to the depth and richness of the Yoruba Language and as a culture at large.

Professor Kayode Adebowale made the acknowledgement known while receiving ten (10) American Students for the 2024 Yoruba Group Project Abroad (YGPA), who paid a courtesy visit to the University management team.

The academic programme was facilitated by the Yoruba Language Centre, University of Ibadan, and Fulbright Hay Yoruba Group Project Abroad.

Fulbright Hay Yoruba Group Project Abroad is an immersion program funded by the United States Department of Education, which offers American college/university students an ample opportunity to learn Yoruba among the native speakers in Nigeria.

The Vice-Chancellor expressed his joy in seeing the students making efforts to learn how to speak the Yoruba Language.

He urged the tutors to impart in the students a deep knowledge of the Yoruba proverbs and idiomatic expressions.

The Vice-Chancellor urged the Yoruba Language Centre to ensure that the students ‘explore the City of Ibadan and its cultural heritage’.

Admonishing the students to be patient with making their visit to Nigeria worthwhile, Professor Adebowale told the students to keep record of all their experiences, encounters and engagements.

Speaking, the Director of the Yoruba Language Centre, Professor Philip Adedotun Ogundeji said the American students will be in the University for eight weeks for an acculturation programme.

Professor Ogundeji noted that the students are currently lodged with families who will get them accustomed to the Yoruba Language and its culture.

He expressed hope that the visiting students would be conversant with Yoruba Language before the program ends.

Credit – Directorate of Public Communication, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.