Alvan Azinna Ikoku (August 1, 1900–November 18, 1971) was a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

educationist, statesman, activist and politician.

Life

Born on August 1, 1900, in Amanagwu

Arochukwu Arochukwu Local Government Area, sometimes referred to as Arochuku or Aro Oke igbo is the third largest local government area in Abia State (after Aba and Umuahia) in southeastern Nigeria and homeland of the Igbo subgroup, Aro people. It ...

, in present-day

Abia State Abia is a state in the Southeastern region of Nigeria. The state's capital is Umuahia and its most populous city is Aba. Abia is bordered the west by Imo, east by Cross River, south by Rivers, northwest by Anambra and northeast by Enug ...

, he was educated at Arochukwu Government Primary School from 1911 to 1914. From 1915 to 1920, he attended Hope Waddell College,

Calabar Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari, Cali and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language, as the Efik people dominate this area. The city is adjac ...

where he was a student under James Emmanuel Aggrey and was classmates with

Akanu Ibiam Sir Akanu Ibiam (29 November 1906 - 1 July 1995), was a distinguished medical missionary who was appointed Governor of Eastern Region, Nigeria from December 1960 until January 1966 during the Nigerian First Republic. From 1919 to 1951, he wa ...

and Eyo Eyo Esua. In 1920, he received his first teaching appointment with the

Presbyterian Church of Nigeria The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria is a church in Nigeria and subscribes to the Westminster Confession of Faith. The denomination had ten synods, more than 50–90 presbyteries and over 7,000 congregations, and almost 5,000 ministers and 6,806 690 ...

and the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

at Itigidi. Two years later, he became a senior tutor at St. Paul's Teachers' Training College, Awka,

Anambra State Anambra () is a States of Nigeria, state in Nigeria. It is located in the South East (Nigeria), South-eastern region of the country. The state was created on 27 August 1991. Anambra state is bounded by Delta State to the west, Imo State and Ri ...

. While teaching at Awka, Ikoku earned his

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

degree in Philosophy in 1928 through its external program. In 1932, Ikoku established a Co-Educational Secondary School in

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

: the Aggrey Memorial Secondary School, located in

and named after his mentor James E.K. Aggrey, an eminent

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

ian educationist. In 1946, after several constitutional changes allowing more Nigerians in the legislative chambers, he was nominated to the Eastern Nigeria House of Assembly and assigned to the ministry of education. In 1947,he became part of the Legislative Council in Lagos as one of three representatives of the Eastern Region. Ikoku fostered considerable government interest in the

Nigeria Union of Teachers {{short description, Trade union in Nigeria Nigeria Union of Teachers is a major trade union in Nigeria. It was formed to create a united front for practitioners of the teaching profession in the country. Major objectives of the union covers the imp ...

(NUT), becoming instrumental in the Legislative Council's acceptance of 44 NUT proposals amending various educational ordinances. He did encounter resistance through much of the 1950s, when the Colonial Government repeatedly rejected his NUT recommendations to introduce uniform education in Nigeria. After national independence, Ikoku and his union were vindicated, when these recommendations became the basis for education policy in the new nation. In 1962, he called for an 'Education Bill of Rights' for primary school education to be free for six years nationwide in Nigeria. This was later accepted by the Federal Military Government as from 1976. Today free education to all primary school has been granted. Dr Ikoku still remains a great icon in Nigerian academic and educational development and one of the most outstanding educationists ever had in Nigeria. Upon retiring from government politics, Ikoku served on various educational bodies in the country. He was a member of the West African Educational Council (WAEC) and the Council of the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public university located in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Initially founded as the University College Ibadan in 1948, it maintained its affiliation with the University of London. In 1962, it became an independe ...

as well as Chairman, Board of Governors of the Aviation Training Centre.

Honours

Honours for his contribution to education in Nigeria include an honorary Doctorate in Law (1965) at a special convocation of the University of Ibadan, the establishment of the Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, a major road, Alvan Ikoku Way, in Maitama, Abuja (Capital of Nigeria) and his commemoration on a bill of Nigerian currency, the Ten Naira note. He died on November 18, 1971. He is also featured in the 10

Naira The naira (sign: ₦; code: NGN; , , , ) is the currency of Nigeria. One naira is divided into 100 ''kobo''. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is the sole issuer of legal tender money throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It controls the ...

banknote since 1979.Nigeria 10 Naira 2009-2019
Bank note museum

References

*Toyin Falola; The History of Nigeria, Greenwood Press (September 30, 1999). {{DEFAULTSORT:Ikoku, Alvan 1900 births 1971 deaths People from Abia State Igbo politicians University of Ibadan people Alumni of University of London Worldwide Alumni of the University of London 20th-century Nigerian politicians People from colonial Nigeria Nigerian schoolteachers Igbo educators Founders of Nigerian schools and colleges 20th-century Nigerian educators Hope Waddell Institute alumni