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Abiodun Egbetokun is an expert in innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development. His work focuses on how people, ideas and institutions come together to drive positive change, especially in developing economies. He is passionate about making research useful for policy and practice, and his projects often explore how skills, technology and innovation can help build more resilient businesses and communities. 

Prior to joining Ï㽶Éç, he spent nearly two decades at the National Centre for Technology Management, Nigeria where he rose to become Deputy Director of Research. In that role, he was engaged in researching and teaching innovation, entrepreneurship, development and policy.

Abiodun has a strong record of international research fellowships and visiting appointments, all secured at the first attempt. His trajectory reflects sustained recognition for research excellence and global collaboration. His doctoral study was funded by a scholarship from the German Research Foundation and he held a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship under the South African Research Chair on Innovation at the Tshwane University of Technology (South Africa). He has also held prestigious fellowships and research visits at leading institutions including the University of Oxford, the United Nations University–MERIT (Netherlands), and the Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators at the Human Sciences Research Council (South Africa).  

Over the course of his career, he has gained a deep understanding of the microeconomic factors that shape entrepreneurship and innovation in the context of development. This is built upon a rich multidisciplinary background in Engineering, Technology Management and Economics. His expertise has been sought by several multilateral development organisations including UNIDO, GIZ and the African Union Commission. He was President (2019-2021) of the Nigerian Young Academy, and Science Advice Policy Fellow (2019) of the US National Science Foundation. As an AuthorAID and Development Studies Association (DSA) mentor, he supports early career researchers in developing countries. Abiodun is presently a member of the ESRC Peer Review College,  an Academic Adviser for the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission and a member of the Anti-Racism Accelerator Award Committee of the Wellcome Trust.

Institute for Responsible Business and Social Justice

The Centre for Enterprise and Innovation (CEI)

• Kruss, G., Petersen, I. haam, Sanni, M., Adeyeye, D. & Egbetokun, A. (2025). . Innovation and Development, 1–25
• Muhammad, A., Egbetokun, A. A., Ibrahim, M. A., Okoli, P. C., Sogbanmu, T. O., Ehilen, O. E., Isah, M. B., Mohammed, I. Y., Animasaun, I. L., Anjorin, A. A., Kenechukwu, F. C., Ibrahim, M. B., Ibor, O. R., Adesiyan, I. M., Umeyor, C. E., Garba, Z. N., Anyanwu, G. O., & Ifeanyi-Obi, C. C. (2024). . Science Communication 47:444-465.
• Egbetokun, A., MacGlone, U., McKeon, E., Newman-Griffis, D., Sedgwick, C. and Tavoulari, A. (2025).  Exchanges: The Interdisciplinary Research Journal 12:33-50.
• Egbetokun, A. Olofinyehun, A. & Adelowo, C. (2024). Entrepreneurship Education 7:41–66 
• Owoseni, A., Kolade, O and Egbetokun, A. (2024). . London: Palgrave Macmillan
• Muhammad, A., Egbetokun, A., Ibrahim, M. A., Okoli, P. C., Sogbanmu, T. O., Ehilen, O. E., Isah, M. B., Mohammed, I. Y., Animasaun, I. L., Anjorin, A. A., Kenechukwu, F. C., Ibrahim, M. B., Ibor, O. R., Adesiyan, I. M., Umeyor, C. E., Garba, Z. N., Anyanwu, G. O., & Ifeanyi-Obi, C. C. (2024). . Science Communication
• Kolade, O., Owoseni, A. and Egbetokun, A. (2024). . Heliyon 10(4). 
• Egbetokun, A. (2023) . Innovation and Development.
• Egbetokun A. (2022). . In: Kolade O., Rae D., Obembe D., Woldesenbet Beta K. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of African Entrepreneurship. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
• Hassan, S. S., Egbetokun, A. and Bzhalava, L. (2022). Open Research Europe 2022, 2:25.
• Olofinyehun, A., Egbetokun, A., Sanni, M., Ayo-Lawal, A., Oluwatope, O. and Yusuff, U. (2022). . International Social Science Journal 72(246).
• Egbetokun, A., Olofinyehun, A., Sanni, M., Ayo-Lawal, A., Oluwatope, O. and Yusuff, U. (2022). . Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 9(1).
• Olofinyehun, A., Egbetokun, A. and Adelowo, C. (2022). . Data in Brief, 40 (107718).
• Egbetokun, A. and Olofinyehun, A. (2021). . Data in Brief, 35 (106932).
• Egbetokun, A., Olofinyehun, A., Oluwatope, O., Olotu, S. and Ejim-Eze, E. (2021) . Journal of African Transformation: Reflections on Policy and Practice, 6 (1/2), pp.116-140
• Kolade, O., Egbetokun, A. and Obembe, D. (2020). S. Journal of international Business Education, 15
• Fu, X., Muchie, M. and Egbetokun, A. (2020). In: Fu, X. Innovation under the radar: the nature and sources of innovation in Africa. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Kolade, O., Egbetokun, A., Rae, D. and Hussain, J. (2020). (chapter 18), in: Scott, J. M., Sinha, P., Gibb, J. & Akoorie, M., ed. Research Handbook on Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham.
• Egbetokun, A., Oluwatope, O., Adeyeye, D. and Sanni, M. (2019). The role of industry and economic context in open innovation: Evidence from Nigeria (chapter 5), pp. 67—87 in: Rexhepi, G.; Hisrich, R. & Ramadani, V., ed., (2019), Open Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Impetus of Growth and Competitive Advantages, Springer, Cham.
• Akerlof, K., Tyler, C., Foxen, S.E and Egbetokun A. A. et al. (2019). . Palgrave Communications 5, 108
• Adeyeye, D., Egbetokun, A., Oluwatope, O., and Sanni, M. (2019). . African Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation and Development, 11(2):243-251
• Yun, J. J., Egbetokun, A. A. and Zhao, X. (2019). . Science, Technology and Society DOI: 10.1177/0971721818806101

• Innovation and Technology Management
• Policy analysis and impact evaluation
• SMEs and entrepreneurship
• International development
• Innovation and entrepreneurship systems/ecosystems

• Technology and innovation management
• Operations Management
• Strategic Management

• PhD in Economics, specialisation in economics of innovation (Friderich Schiller University)
• Certificate in Academic Teaching (Friderich Schiller University, Germany)
• MSc in Technology Management (Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria)
• BSc in Mechanical Engineering (Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria)

UG: Research Methods; PG: Operations and Service Quality Management; Technology and Innovation Management; Strategic Management; Development Theory and Planning; Technological Entrepreneurship; Management of R&D and Innovation Systems; Empirical Research Methods

• Final shortlist  – Africa Evidence Leaders Award (Evidence Producer)
• Ï㽶Éç SDG Fellow (since November 2024)
• Nominated – Individual Research Excellence, Faculty of Business and Law, Ï㽶Éç (2024)
• Nominated – Ï㽶Éç Climate Awards (2024)
• Highly Commended – Climate Action Engagement Champion, Ï㽶Éç (2024)
• Best Paper, Inclusive Economies Track, Faculty of Business and Law Research Conference, Ï㽶Éç (2023)
• Science Advice for Policy Fellowship (2019)
• Africa-Oxford Visiting Research Grant, University of Oxford (2018)
• Open Innovation and Technology Best Paper Award (2018)
• Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, South African Research Chair Initiative (2015)
• Visiting Research Fellowship, UNU-MERIT, the Netherlands (2014)
• German Research Foundation (DFG) Doctoral Research Fellowship (2010-2013)
• DAAD Short-term Fellowship for Foreign PhDs (2013-2014)
• Best Course Coordinator, National Centre for Technology Management, Nigeria (2009)

Member, Anti-Racism Accelerator Awards Committee, Wellcome Trust

Member, ESRC Peer Review College

Member, BAM Peer Review College

Academic Adviser, Commonwealth Scholarship Commission

Trustee, Centre Project

• Chartered Management Institute (since 2024)
• British Academy of Management (since 2023)
• IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society (since 2023)
• Development Studies Association (since 2018)
• African Academy of Management (since 2012)
• International Schumpeter Society (since 2012)
• Nigerian Young Academy (2017 - 2022)

Member, Chartered Management Institute

Certified Management and Business Educator (CMBE)

Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Ï㽶Éç Learning and Teaching Conference (September 2025)

Ï㽶Éç Learning and Teaching Conference (January 2024)

Decolonising Ï㽶Éç Conference (November 2023)

International Growth Centre (IGC)/Economic Growth Centre (EGC) Conference (October 2023)

British Academy of Management Conference (September, 2023)

1st Nigerialics Conference (February, 2023)

• Policy analysis
• Impact evaluation
• Quantitative research design/analysis
• Research systems
• Executive/researcher training

Julia Taibi-Voigts (1st supervisor)

Zhaoyu Ma  (1st supervisor)

Nandan Sharma (1st supervisor)

 Betty Kinoti (2nd supervisor)

• Development of an AI-powered solution for customer relationship management for a Leicestershire business – a Knowledge Transfer Project (KTP) - £270,793 by Innovate UK, UKRI (Co-Principal Investigator, 2025-2027)
• Venture to adapt? Entrepreneurship as a coping mechanism for immigrants in the UK - £100,000 by the Economoic and Social Research Council, ESRC (Co-Principal Investigator, 2025-2028)
• Evaluating the impact of entrepreneurship education on youth entrepreneurship: A comprehensive study of young Nigerians  - £8,430 by British Academy, BA (Principal Investigator, 2024-2025)
• (BIG CIRCLE) - £2,500 by International Network of Universities, INU (Team member, 2023-2024)
• - £14,025 by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, CEPR and the FCDO (Principal Investigator, 2021-2023)
• - £8,540 by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, CEPR and the FCDO (Principal Investigator, 2020-2021)
• - CA$378,800 by the International Development Research Centre, IDRC (co-Principal Investigator, 2019-2022)
• - US$44,650 by the Global Development Network, GDN (Principal Investigator, 2019-2021)
• - £163,533 by the Economic and Social Research Council, ESRC (co-Investigator, 2017-2019)
• - £24,850 by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, CEPR and the FCDO (co-Investigator, 2014-2016)
• - £17,450 by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, CEPR and the FCDO (Principal Investigator, 2014-2015)

• The responsible and ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI) by small businesses in resource-constrained contexts. £1,300 from the Faculty of Business and Law (Principal Investigator, 2025)
• resilience and digital transformation of informal sector firms in a developing country. £789 from the Faculty of Business and Law (Co-investigator, 2024)
• “Hard pressed, pressing hard”: social capital, spiritual capital and entrepreneurial strategies in turbulent environments. £5,000 from the Faculty of Business and Law Seedcorn funding (Co-investigator, 2018)

Associate Editor,

Associate Editor, 

Associate Editor,

Editorial Board,

0000-0002-2069-7648

•  (BBC, October 20, 2025)
• (Leadership, October 16, 2025)
• (Nigerian Tribune, October 16, 2025)
• (The Conversation, July 29, 2025)
• (April 22, 2025)
• (Nigerian Tribune, April 22, 2025)
•  (The Conversation, October 31, 2024)
• (LSE Blog, July 31, 2024)
• (Nigerian Tribune, March 13, 2024)

• (The Guardian Newspapers, October 16, 2023)
•  (The Guardian Newspapers, October 3, 2023)
•  (The Guardian Newspapers, March 20, 2023)
• (The Guardian Newsppers, April 11, 2023)