Meet UNILORIN’s Youngest Professor, Lukman Abdulrauf

The University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) has spotlighted Professor Lukman Abdulrauf as its youngest professor, recognizing his outstanding contributions to legal scholarship, particularly in the areas of technology, governance and constitutional law.

In a statement published on the university’s official platform, UNILORIN described Abdulrauf as a distinguished academic in the Department of Public Law whose teaching and research focus on the intersection of law, technology, and governance.

According to the institution, Professor Abdulrauf specializes in data privacy, artificial intelligence (AI) governance, digital constitutionalism, and aspects of comparative constitutional law, with particular attention to African legal systems and emerging digital challenges.

The university noted that the legal scholar has built an impressive international academic profile. He currently serves as an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Law, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and is also a Research Fellow at the Institute for International and Comparative Law in Africa (ICLA), University of Pretoria.

Prior to these roles, Abdulrauf held prestigious research fellowships at Stanford University’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) in the United States and the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS) in South Africa, where he conducted research on digital governance, human rights, and institutional development in emerging democracies.

UNILORIN further revealed that Abdulrauf’s research has attracted significant international recognition and funding. He served as Co-Investigator on a project funded by the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH), which examined the ethical, legal, and social implications of using genomic data for health research in African countries.

The university explained that the project reflects his broader interest in data governance, constitutional regulation, public interest law, and the impact of digital technologies on governance and society across the Global South.

In addition to his research activities, Abdulrauf serves on the editorial board of International Data Privacy Law, a leading academic journal published by Oxford University Press and widely regarded as one of the foremost publications in the field of information and data protection law.

His scholarly works have been presented at several international conferences and have contributed significantly to global discussions on AI regulation, platform accountability, data protection, digital constitutionalism, and technology-driven governance reforms.

Recently, Abdulrauf completed a fellowship at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS), University of Freiburg, Germany, where his research focused on digital constitutionalism and the governance of artificial intelligence in Africa.

Born on February 23, 1987, Professor Abdulrauf achieved a remarkable milestone when he was elevated to the rank of professor on October 1, 2025, at the age of 38, making him the youngest professor at the University of Ilorin.

His appointment has been widely celebrated as a testament to academic excellence, dedication to research, and the growing global recognition of Nigerian scholars in cutting-edge fields shaping the future of law and technology.