GCU Old Boys in UK, Ireland Hail Designation of Government College Umuahia as Heritage Site

Says GCU first academic institution in Nigeria to be so designated — targets National Monument, UNESCO listing

UMUAHIA — The Government College Umuahia Old Boys Association, Great Britain and Ireland Chapter, GCUOBA GB&I, has welcomed the designation of Government College Umuahia as a State Heritage Site by the Abia State Government, describing it as historic and deeply gratifying.

The Abia State Executive Council, presided over by Governor Alex Otti, had on Monday approved Government College Umuahia, alongside the National War Museum and Ojukwu Bunker, as State Monuments.

In a statement signed by its President, Chidi Okorie, the association said GCU is the first academic institution in Nigeria to be so designated.

“For almost a century, GCU has been much more than a school. From the founding vision of Rev. Robert Fisher, it developed a distinctive educational culture built around scholarship, character, discipline, creativity, sport and service,” the statement said.

The group noted that generations of remarkable Nigerians were formed in the college, including Chinua Achebe, Christopher Okigbo, Ben Enwonwu, Gabriel Okara, Elechi Amadi, Chukwuemeka Ike, Yusuf Grillo, Laz Ekwueme and Ken Saro-Wiwa, among others.

It added that the famous Biology textbook, _‘New Biology For Tropical Schools’_ was written by Stone and A.B. Cozens while they taught at GCU, with Cozens later becoming Principal between 1952 and 1956, while N.P. Iloeje published _‘A New Geography of Nigeria’_ in 1965 as a Geography teacher in the college.

“The designation therefore recognises, not simply a collection of historic buildings, but Government College Umuahia itself as an historic educational and cultural landscape — its buildings, Houses, Library, Assembly Hall, playing fields, historic cricket grounds, arts workshops, roads, trees, traditions, memories and the remarkable human story that binds them together,” it stated.

GCUOBA GB&I said the announcement has particular significance for the chapter, which had in recent months worked to build the case for formal heritage recognition, working with the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, NCMM, and engaging extensively with Abia State Government institutions.

It cited the NCMM technical assessment visit to GCU in August 2026 and engagements with the State Executive, Legislature and relevant Ministry as important steps in the journey.

The association expressed profound gratitude to Governor Otti and the Government of Abia State for the decisive step, and thanked the Commissioner for Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, Principal Officers of the Abia State House of Assembly, and the Secretary to the State Government, who received the delegation on behalf of the Governor.

It also acknowledged the support of the GCUOBA National Executive Council, the Fisher Educational Development Trust, FEDT, the School Management Council, SMC, and Old Boys across branches and classes.

The chapter placed on record special appreciation to Mazi Ugochukwu Okoroafor, Special Adviser to the Governor on Monitoring and Evaluation and Abia Government nominee on the Board of FEDT, describing him as an invaluable partner whose commitment and ability to engage across Government, FEDT, GCUOBA and the wider college community contributed significantly to the achievement.

“This is a milestone, not the destination. The task has just begun to solidify the status of GCU as a Heritage Site,” the statement said, adding that the designation provides foundation for pursuit of its designation as a National Monument by NCMM and longer-term ambition of inclusion on Nigeria’s UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.

“Today is a day to celebrate. It is a day to recognise what becomes possible when Government, the Legislature, the Trust, the School Management Council, the Old Boys Association and the wider College community work together. Our objective is not to turn GCU into a museum. It is to preserve its history while ensuring that it remains a living, thriving public educational institution — one capable of producing new generations worthy of the extraordinary generations that preceded them,” Okorie added.