Professor Mabogunje receiving his prize in France

By Ademola Adegbamigbe

Professor Akin Mabogunje, a grand old Nigerian geographer, the first African president of the International Geographical Union and the first African to be elected as a Foreign Associate of the United States National Academy of Sciences, had triple celebrations this year. He turned 86 on 18 October. And early in the month, he, for his contributions to his chosen field, received the highly coveted Vautrin-Lud Prize which is the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in Georgraphy.

The Professor was also inducted as a fellow into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences where such other icons as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, John F. Kennedy, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela are fellows. Toki Mabogunje, one of his relations, also added: “Current members, according to him, represent today’s innovative thinkers in every field and profession. This includes more than 200 Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners.”

The biggest among the landmarks is the Vautrin Lud Prize ( in French, Prix International de Géographie Vautrin Lud) and it is the highest award in the field of Geography. Generally, it is known as the “Nobel Prize for Geography”. According to scholars, it was established in 1991 and modeled on the Nobel Prize and named after the 16th Century French scholar, Vautrin Lud “who is credited with naming the New World America after Amerigo Vespucci.” Decided upon by a five-person international jury, the award is given annually at the International Geography Festival in Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, France (the home town of Vautrin Lud).

In one of the tributes to him, another scholar wrote that in 1968, Mabogunje wrote Urbanization in Nigeria, about urbanization and state formation. In the book, Mabogunje argued that the existence of specialists is not sufficient to cause urbanization. Mabogunje describes three “limiting conditions” which are additionally required: a surplus of food production, a small group of powerful people to control the surplus and maintain peace, and a class of traders or merchants who can provide materials to the specialists.”

His alma mater, the University College, London (UCL) Department of Geography, wrote a tribute too: “After postgraduate research on rural SW Nigeria and the urban geography of Lagos, Akin taught at the University of Ibadan, and has since been visiting professor at universities throughout the world, publishing widely on aspects of urban geography and development studies. He has also been a consultant to many Nigerian and international development organizations, including the United Nations and the World Bank.

“Akin was first African president of the International Geographical Union (1980-84), and also the first to be elected as a Foreign Associate of the United States National Academy of Sciences (1999). Earlier this year he was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also an Honorary Fellow of UCL.”

The Prix Vautrin-Lud ceremony may be viewed at; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bSVZwYAp8I