BEHOLD THE NEW HIGH CHIEF LISA OF ONDO KINGDOM!
Professor Nahzeem Oluwafemi MIMIKO, mni
Femi Mimiko, mni, is Professor of Political Science (Comparative Political Economy and International Relations) at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. He is the second son of the late Pa Atiku Bamidele Mimiko of Ondo and Mrs. Muinat Mimiko of the Ogunsulie family, also of Ondo. His great, great grandfather was the High Chief Adaja Gbegbaje of Ondo. His great grandfather, Chief Akinmeji, was the Ruwase of Ondo. The Ruwase sired Professor Mimiko’s grandfather, Pa Bello Famimikomi Akinmeji, the shorter version of whose middle name, Mimiko, subsists in the family till today.
Early education:
Born in Ondo on May 1, 1960, Professor Mimiko had his elementary education at St. Patrick’s Primary School (Lower) (now St. Paul’s Primary School), Mosunmola Street, Ondo, after which he spent one year at Ondo Grammar School, Ondo, from where he proceeded to St. Joseph’s College, Ondo, in 1973, to complete his secondary school education, which he did in 1979. He thereafter got admitted to the Federal School of Arts and Science, Ondo, where he completed the West African School Certificate (WASC) Advanced Level, in 1979. That same year, Mimiko gained (Direct Entry) admission into the former University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, to study Social Sciences (Political Science). He also did postgraduate studies at the same university, earning a Master degree and PhD in International Relations in 1984 and 1992 respectively. He put in his one-year national service (NYSC) at Iyuku Community Secondary School, Iyuku-Uzairue, in the then Etsako LGA, of the former Bendel State.
Research focus, and fellowships:
Professor Mimiko’s research and publication interests cover comparative political economy, international relations, development and transition studies, policy and strategic studies, and higher education governance. He was University Postgraduate Fellow at the same institution, formerly University of Ife, in 1983/84. He did post-doctoral studies at The Thomas J. Watson Jr. Institute for International Studies, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA; and at the Academy of Korean Studies, Seoul, South Korea. He was also on the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, MA, USA, Executive Education Programme, in March 2012.
A fellow of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC)-MacArthur Foundation, and Korean Foundation, among others, Mimiko is also a Fulbright Scholar. He was Visiting Professor under the Military Scholar Initiatives, at the United States Military Academy (USMA), West Point, NY, USA. In 2002, Mimiko won the Ford Foundation Grant for Conference participation in East London, South Africa. At West Point, he was conferred with the “USMA Army Commander’s Public Service Award” (2004). He also got the “University of Texas at Austin Africa Conference Distinguished Public Service Award” in March 2011; and is the holder of the “Africa and the African Diaspora Excellent Leadership Award” (2013) conferred on him by the Ibadan Cultural Study Group, University of Ibadan/TOFAC. A year later, in 2014, the Osemawe and Paramount Ruler of Ondo Kingdom, His Imperial Majesty Oba Dr Victor Kiladejo, CFR, Jilo III conferred on Professor Mimiko the “Osemawe Royal Award.”
Administration:
Mimiko became a full professor in 2004; and was at different times, the Head of Department of Political Science, at Obafemi Awolowo University. He was also Acting Dean, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Head of Department of Political Science, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, and Acting Vice-Chancellor, at Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, Nigeria. He subsequently served as the 4th Vice-Chancellor at the University (AAUA), from 2010 to 2015. He was on the Senior Executive Course 37, 2015, of Nigeria’s foremost think tank, the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, earning the “mni.” In 2016 through 2017, Mimiko was African and African-American Studies Associate at Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA. He was appointed, Senior Research Fellow (on sabbatical leave from OAU), at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Abuja, Nigeria, October 2024; and Director, Research, at the Centre, from May 2025 till October 2026, when he voluntarily relinquished the position. He is currently a Resource Person to several strategic institutions across Nigeria, including the Strategic Intelligence Management Institute, Abuja; National Institute for Security Studies, Bwari, Abuja; National Defence College (Alumni), Abuja; Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Abuja; and his alma mater, National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru.
Publications and professional affiliation:
A celebrated teacher, and an accomplished keynote speaker at international conferences, Mimiko has authored more than 100 journal articles, book chapters, and technical reports. He also has to his credit a number of books, including, “Globalization: The Politics of Global Economic Relations,” and “‘Democradura’: Essays on Nigeria’s Limited Democracy,” both published by Carolina Academic Press, Durham, North Carolina, USA, in 2012 and 2017, respectively. He is also the author of the 500-page book, “Getting Our Universities Back on Track: Reflections and Governance Paradigms from My Vice-Chancellorship,” Austin, Texas: Pan-African University Press, 2017. His most recent books are, “Context and Content in Nigeria’s Foreign Policy,” (2026), published by Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), and “Defeating Complex Insurgencies: Global Trends and Emulation Possibilities for Nigeria,” (2026), co-edited with Major General JGK Myam (rtd.), OFR, and published by the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Abuja.
Mimiko is a member of, among others, the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Nigerian Political Science Association (NPSA), Nigerian Society of International Affairs (NSIA), International Political Science Association (IPSA), Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC), Fulbright Alumni Association of Nigeria (FAAN); Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS); African Centre for Security Studies (ACSS) Alumni Nigeria; and Alumni Association of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (AANI). He was chairman of the Education, Science and Technology Committee of AANI; and a member of its Policy, Strategy and Innovation Committee. Currently, he heads the Association’s Conference Committee; as well as the NSIA Study Group on Africa.
Public intellectualism and national service:
A committed public intellectual and public policy analyst, Mimiko has made incisive interventions on critical national and global developmental issues, in several traditional and social media outlets. He quite often appears on different electronic media, including at least once on BBC, and many times on Nigeria’s NTA, to share his perspectives on global issues. His public policy analyses often get published by newspapers/magazines, both at home and abroad, amongst which are The Guardian, Lagos; Nigeria Tribune, Ibadan, The Korea Times, Seoul; Daily Sketch, Ibadan, New Telegraph, Abuja, Punch, Lagos, Thisday, Abuja, The Nation, Lagos, Premium Times, Abuja, and Sun, Abuja. In 2017, the Carolina Academic Press, Durham, NC, USA, published a collection of these articles as “’Democradura’: Essays in Nigeria’s Limited Democracy.”
Professor Mimiko was a Delegate at the 2014 National Conference in Abuja; a consultant on development issues to a number of local and international agencies; and is on the board of some start-up companies, and NGOs. He is a Fellow of the Academy of International Affairs, Nigeria; and Society for Educators, UK. He is also a Paul Harris Fellow, of Rotary International.
Community engagement:
On the community front, Professor Mimiko became a member of the Ondo Development Committee (ODC) some 10 years ago. Way before then, he had been invited by the then Chairman of the Committee, the late Professor Ifedayo Oladapo, to put together what remains till this day, the only official narration of the ODC growth trajectory, a full-length book titled, “Bearing Testimony: Twenty Years of Ondo Development Committee, 1986-2006” (co-authored with Dayo Awude), and published by ODC. Mimiko served on the Ondo City Proclamation Committee, which coordinated the realization of His Imperial Majesty Oba Kiladejo’s city vision for Ondo. In addition, Professor Mimiko contributed a chapter (in collaboration with Dare Arowolo) on ‘Evolution of Politics and Governance in Ondo Kingdom, 1510 – 2010’ to the 2013 commemorative book on 500 years of the recorded history of the Ondo monarchy, edited by Professor S. Ibi Ajayi, and published by Spectrum Books, Ibadan. On the academic plane, Professor Mimiko was nominated in 2018 by His Imperial Majesty as a member of the Governing Council of Wesley University, Ondo, representing the Ondo community. He served in that capacity from 2018 to 2022. On March 21, 2026, Mimiko was elected the National President of St. Joseph’s College, Ondo, Old Boys Association (SJCOBA) – the alumni association of his alma mater.
The Professor of Political Science, with abiding interest in governance and development issues, held the honorary chieftaincy title, Gbobaniyi of Ondo Kingdom, before he was conferred with the traditional title, Jomulaja of Ondo Kingdom on December 9, 2024, by the Osemawe of Ondo and Paramount Ruler of Ondo Kingdom.
Global citizenship:
In a May 2025 letter to felicitate Professor Mimiko on his 65th birthday, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, said of him, ‘You have shared your intellectual gifts with the nation … Empiricism and objectivity (are) the hallmarks of your analyses of public policy. Your well-crafted prose has enriched our country, and your influence on public policy is undeniable.’ The President further noted in the letter, personally signed by him, that Professor Mimiko’s ‘status as a global citizen has not precluded you from involvement in local community development initiatives, a fact that accounts for His Imperial Majesty, the Osemawe, conferring on you the traditional title of Jomulaja of Ondo Kingdom, your place of birth.’
