Mr Sesan
By David Akinmola
The Head of Marketing at AXA Mansard Insurance Plc,Olusesan Ogunyooye, has called on Nigerian universities to deepen their “town and gown” collaborations by ensuring that academic research directly responds to societal needs and business challenges.
He made the remarks while recently delivering a lecture titled “Beyond the Arts: Applying the Knowledge of Language to Business” to students of the Department of Languages and General Studies at Covenant University, Ota.
While commending the institution’s efforts in bridging the gap between academia and industry through its Town and Gown Initiative, Ogunyooye noted that more still needs to be done, especially in the areas of research relevance, industry co-creation, and practitioner involvement in evaluation and knowledge development within the academia.
“We need to move beyond engagement for the sake of engagement. It’s time for academia to ask how our research solves the everyday challenges that businesses face. How does it improve society, shape policy, or drive innovation?”
“I sell insurance. And every day, I have sleepless nights about what can make Nigerians tick for insurance. How can I move them from the spirituality of “God forbid” to the pragmatism of investing in insurance? Yet I interview graduates, and when I ask them about their research topics, it is difficult for me to connect it to solving any of the existing problems I am facing”.
Beyond me as an individual, imagine the possibilities for our economy and national prosperity if we increase insurance penetration in Nigeria. Our nation lost over $4.6 billion to flooding between 2022 and 2024, wiping out more than ₦700 billion in farm assets. In healthcare, 993 women die per 100,000 live births due to pregnancy-related causes. These are losses that a highly penetrated market can help mitigate.
“To show you the power of insurance, during the #EndSARS and xenophobia crises, insurance companies stepped up, paying out over ₦11 billion in claims to help businesses recover and reopen. Imagine how many jobs could have been lost if there were no insurance policies on some of these businesses. Insurance isn’t just a financial strategy for businesses and individuals; it’s a foundation for national resilience, economic recovery, and the well-being of our people.
“To get insurance at the intersection of national development and market need is what we struggle with every day as an industry, and as I prepare for this session, the question on my mind is ‘what can academia do for us?’ he asked.
He urged universities to develop frameworks where lecturers not only observe practitioners in action but actively collaborate with them using real-world data, trends, and business case studies to inform scholarly work, saying, “It’s no longer enough for research to be a means to a degree. It must be a tool for national development and business growth”.
Drawing from his journey from an English Language graduate to a senior executive in the insurance, real estate, healthcare, fintech, and public-private sectors, Ogunyooye explained how the practical application of the science of language, communication, and cultural insight has driven success across industries.
He also called on the Nigerian academic system to rethink the scope of thesis and dissertation projects, ensuring that more work is tied to real-time challenges faced by both the public and private sectors.
“When students are researching what real businesses are struggling with and when faculty collaborate with industry in shaping and evaluating that work, then research becomes a tool for transformation,” he concluded.
The session, which drew participation from students and faculty alike, is part of Covenant University’s ongoing efforts to foster collaboration between classroom learning and industry realities.
As Nigerian institutions continue to explore the role of research in national development, Ogunyooye’s call is another reminder that academic knowledge must be usable and apllicable beyond the classrooms.
