Babatunde Ogunnaike’s bio: Everything to know about the co-author of Nigeria’s national anthem
For those conversant with the history of Nigeria, the name Babatunde Ogunnaike would surely ring a bell.
This is because he is a part of the long history of Nigeria as he contributed to the country’s national anthem, which is still in use to date.
Ogunnaike was among the four people, including P.O. Aderibigbe, John Ilechukwu, Sota Omoigui, and Eme Etim Akpan, who dropped their compositions to form the new national anthem, which has been in use since 1978.
However, on the 20th of February 2022, the report disclosed that Babatunde Ogunnaike had passed away at the age of 65 years.
The news of Ogunnaike’s death came as a shock to many Nigerians who have taken to the various platform to pay their last respect to one of the composers of the current Nigerian national anthem.
This article is focused on what you should know about Babatunde Ogunnaike, continue reading to see more.
Profile Summary
Full name | Babatunde A Ogunnaike |
Gender | Male |
Date of birth | March 26, 1956 |
Age | 65 years old |
Place of birth | Ijebu Igbo, Ogun state |
Date of death | February 20th 2022 |
Place of death | Hockessin, Delaware, U.S |
Nationality | Nigerian, American |
Profession | Engineer |
Babatunde Ogunnaike’s biography
Babatunde Ogunnaike was born on the 26th of March 1956 in Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State, Nigeria, but there are no details of who his parents are.
There are also no records of him having any siblings, Babatunde Ogunnaike was however a Nigerian American and was 65 years old when he died.
Babatunde Ogunnaike’s education
Babatunde Ogunnaike holds a degree in Chemical engineering from the University of Lagos and worked as a lecturer in the same department in 1982 where he went on to become a Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor of Chemical engineering.
In 1988, he left Unilag to furthered his studies and bagged masters from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and then a PhD in Chemical engineering from the same University.
Babatunde Ogunnaike’s career
Babatunde Ogunnaike worked as a Research Engineer with the Process Control group of the Shell Development Corporation in Houston, Texas and was there for one year.
Ogunnaike also was a researcher for DuPont and served as a consultant for many companies like Gore, PPG Industries, and Corning Inc.
The Nigerian anthem composer would later join the faculty of the University of Delaware in 2002 and was made the Dean of the College of Engineering in 2011.
Babatunde Ogunnaike has several books, papers and book chapters, on engineering to his name.
Babatunde Ogunnaike’s personal life
The record revealed he was battling a long time cancer before his death on the 20th of February 2022 in Hockessin, Delaware, U.S.