The English Scholars Association of Nigeria (ESAN) has conferred its prestigious Fellowship on the Dean, Faculty of Arts, Federal University Birnin Kebbi (FUBK), Prof. Asabe Kabir Usman.
The conferment took place during the 60th Anniversary celebration and 41st Annual Conference of ESAN, held at Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, from September 7 to 10, 2026.
The conference, which brought together English scholars, linguists and communication experts from across Nigeria and beyond, was held under the theme, "Rethinking Identity in Language, Literary and Communication Studies in the Digital Age."
The Fellowship represents a significant recognition of Prof. Usman's academic standing and contribution to scholarship, while further highlighting the contributions of FUBK academics to national scholarly development.
The four-day conference also marked six decades of organised English scholarship in Nigeria. ESAN traces its origins to 1966, when it was established as the Nigeria English Studies Association.
A major highlight of the conference was a keynote address by former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, who challenged scholars to confront emerging issues arising from artificial intelligence, digital authorship, algorithmic communication, misinformation and changing reading cultures.
Prof. Rasheed also noted the contributions of Nigerian scholars over the decades to global scholarship in areas including stylistics, sociolinguistics and discourse analysis.
Reacting to the conferment, the Vice-Chancellor of FUBK, Prof. Muhammad Zaiyan Umar, congratulated Prof. Asabe Kabir Usman on the recognition, describing it as a notable achievement and a reflection of her scholarly contributions.
The Vice-Chancellor urged her to continue to uphold the ideals of academic excellence, contribute meaningfully to scholarship and use her position to inspire younger academics and further advance the intellectual development of the University.
FUBK Bulletin reports that Prof. Usman is a Professor of Oral and African Literature and a vastly experienced novelist, essayist, folklorist and poet.
The University community celebrates the erudite scholar on the conferment and wishes her continued success in her academic and professional endeavours.