Meet the AWS Academy member institutions in Nigeria

On November 1, 2022, Amazon Web Services (AWS) launched its first Nigerian office to enable the adoption of the services in the country.

Aside from the office, AWS is supporting Nigerian startups and the community with programs like AWS Activate and AWS educational programs like AWS Academy, AWS Educate and AWS re/Start.

AWS Academy helps university students and educators develop knowledge and skills about AWS Cloud computing, to accelerate cloud-related learning. The Academy enables students to land well-paid jobs by providing them access to valuable skills.

Students in member institutions also receive 50% discounts on AWS Certification exams and exclusive access to the Emerging Talent Community upon course completion.

Currently, there are over 80 AWS Academy member institutions in Africa. Only three are from Nigeria, namely: University of Benin, University of Jos, and Igbinedion University.

University of Benin

The University of Benin was founded in 1970. It started as an Institute of Technology and was accorded the status of a full-fledged University by National Universities Commission (NUC) on July 1, 1971.

In his Budget Speech in April 1972, the then Military Governor of Mid-Western State, Col. S. O. Ogbemudia (then also the Visitor to the University) formally announced the change of the name of the Institute of Technology to the University of Benin. In April 1975, the University at the request of the State Government was taken over by the Federal Government and became a Federal University.

University of Jos

The University of Jos (UNIJOS) started as a Campus of the University of Ibadan in November 1971, with the appointment of Professor E. A. Ayandele as its first Acting Principal. Its first students admitted in January 1972 were pre-degree students.

Degree courses in Arts were introduced in October 1973 and in Science and Education the following year. In October 1975, the then Military Government announced the establishment of seven new Universities and University Colleges including the University of Jos.

The University is one of the Nigerian universities at the forefront of technology and innovation. In 2001, UNIJOS Cisco Networking Academy was the second academy in Nigeria.

The current Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Tanko Ishaya is a Professor of Computer Science with a Mathematics background and specialism and experience in Data Engineering, Computer Security and Forensics.

Igbinedion University

Established in 1999, Igbinedion University, Okada, is the first private university in Nigeria. Aside from the AWS Academy, the University's drive for technology and innovation has led it to partner with other big tech firms to set up academies, including Huawei, Microsoft and Cisco.