Pages: (91-113 )
Abstract
This study analyses the demographic evolution of West Africa’s pioneer higher education institutions—the University of Ibadan (UCI), Nigeria, and the University of Ghana, Legon (UG) -between 1948 and 1962. Framed around the political economy of education (PEE) and historical institutionalism (HI), this paper contextualizes the operational adaptability of UCI and UG to rising student enrollment from late colonial rule to early national independence. Historically, the literature on early West African higher education has focused extensively on political nationalism, leaving a significant gap in data-driven demographic histories and the socioeconomic shifts in the student body. This article addresses this gap through a comparative method, analyzing how state expansion policies democratized access while transforming student demography during the period of study. It also investigates the infrastructural strain caused by the state-mandated expansion policies and argues that rather than institutional inertia, the era was marked by administrative resilience and tactical adaptation. Both universities managed the demographic shift by altering rigid on-campus accommodation policies, introducing applied academic disciplines, providing new lecture halls, and diversifying funding sources through collaboration with state marketing boards and international foundations. The study employs a comparative historical methodology that juxtaposes primary archival documents, institutional enrollment registries, and official policy papers with relevant secondary sources. The study's primary contribution is to offer vital historical insights for modern educational planners, showing that sustainable higher education policy requires adaptive, fluid organizational structures capable of responding to shifting contexts.
Keywords: University College Ibadan, University of Cape Coast, Legon, Expansion Policy, Demography, Historical Institutionalism,