The University of Benin (UNIBEN) has reaffirmed its commitment to climate action, youth empowerment and technological advancement by launching the UNIBEN Campus Green Belt Initiative and unveiling plans for an ambitious, multi-disciplinary innovation ecosystem.
Sponsored by Renaissance Africa Energy Group – a leading integrated energy operator and Nigeria’s largest independent upstream joint venture operator – and delivered by integrated service company The Offshore Lab, the project redefines the role of tertiary institutions in Nigeria. It shifts the university from a traditional center of theoretical learning into an active, self-sustaining node of technological production, environmental stewardship and community wealth creation.
Leading this dual strategy is the UNIBEN Campus Green Belt, an experimental field site where digital tools are directly applied to real-world ecological and agricultural challenges. UNIBEN becomes the second node of a growing national network following the inaugural Campus Green Belt established at Bauchi State University in 2024. The UNIBEN site introduces a new 1,000-tree orchard alongside the launch of a student-led Pioneer Club, creating a living laboratory where students apply data science, IoT environmental monitoring and sustainable agronomy directly to the land.
Directly linked to this field laboratory is a state-of-the-art Innovation ecosystem designed to accelerate local research, digital skill acquisition, and regional entrepreneurship. The facility will house an ICT Centre featuring 288 high-performance computing systems supported by robust network infrastructure, a Deep Tech Hub equipped with Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms and modular data center capabilities, and specialized hardware fabrication and product development laboratories. In a fusion of heritage and emerging technology, the ecosystem also introduces a Virtual Museum of Benin, designed to preserve and showcase Edo cultural history through immersive digital public engagement that can be accessed from anywhere in the world.
The initiative operates on a three-tier connected model:
- Technology to Field: Students utilize advanced computational tools and analytics from the ICT Centre to monitor orchard health, optimize resource usage, and test green technologies in real time.
- Field to Community: The UNIBEN Pioneer Club serves as an outreach engine, sharing data-driven agronomic insights and practical technical support with neighboring smallholder farmers.
- Learning to Value: By establishing a continuous feedback loop between university research and local farming networks, the initiative builds sustainable food systems and enhances regional economic resilience.
Speaking on the transformative potential of the initiative, Professor Edoba B. Omoregie, SAN, Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, said, “At the University of Benin, our transformation is deliberate: to build a world-class, student-centred University where teaching, research and skills acquisition are increasingly technology-driven, practical and responsive to emerging national and global trends. The Renaissance Technology Ecosystem therefore feels like a natural and perfect fit with the direction in which our University is already moving.
The Innovation Ecosystem will deepen our students’ exposure to advanced computing, artificial intelligence and hardware fabrication, while the Campus Greenbelt extends that same philosophy of applied learning to environmental stewardship. We have already planted more than 5,000 trees in our drive for a greener UNIBEN; this dedicated 1,000-tree orchard, together with a student-led Campus Greenbelt Club, builds naturally on that commitment.
Together, these interventions give our students platforms to acquire skills, turn knowledge into practical solutions and create lasting value for the University, our communities and the wider society.
The General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Mr Olanrewaju Olawuyi, from Renaissance Africa Energy Group said, “we are proud to sponsor this exciting initiative that brings together technological infrastructure, youth agency, and environmental action. By investing in UNIBEN’s ecosystem and other similar initiatives across top tertiary institutions across the country, we are supporting a practical blueprint where young Nigerians can leverage deep tech and sustainable agriculture to power local industrialization and community enterprise.”
Emeka Obiwulu, Chief Executive Officer of The Offshore Lab, added: “Our brief is to deliver adaptive infrastructure that will support innovative education and the transformation of our tertiary institutions from centres of passive learning to active nodes of production and sustainability. By closing the loop between technology, field testing, and community outreach, we are creating a scalable model for modern, production-focused education that can be replicated across the country.”
