Prof. Vincent Alaba Akinsete was born on March 25, 1937 in Ondo State. He attended Ondo Boys' High School from 1949 to 1953 and later proceeded in October 1957 to St. Catharine's College, Cambridge University, United Kingdom, where he graduated B.A. (Mechanical Science Tripos) in 1960.On his return to Nigeria, he worked with the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN) Ijora Power Station and later returned to the United Kingdom in September 1960 and started the Diploma of Imperial College (DIC) course in Heat Transfer and Combustion. He finished this course successfully in June 1961.
Prof Akinsete joined ECN (NEPA, later PHCN) fully as Power Engineer, commencing with training session with Central Electricity Generating Board (of Great Britain) at Blythe "B" Power Station, Newcastle Hawker Siddeley Brush Turbines at Staines, Middlesex (Small turbines), (larger turbines and fuel pumps and injections), Brush Electric at Loughborough, W.H. Allens, Queen Engineering Works, Bedford (for turbines steam and gas. Diesel Engines, Gears, Pumps etc) and Mirlees Bickerton & Day, Stockport (Hawker Siddeley Group) for larger Diesel Engines.
He returned to Nigeria in 1962 and was posted by ECN to Port Harcourt as Deputy Power Station Superintendent, DPSS (Steam turbines and diesel engines) and later as Deputy P.S.S. for the new Afam Power Station (Gas Turbines) where he was attached to the contractors, Messrs Brown Boveri Co. ( later called ASEA BROWN BOVERI - ABB).
In 1963, he proceeded to McGill University, Montreal, Canada where he obtained his M.Eng. and Ph.D. He returned to Nigeria in 1968 to join the Mechanical Engineering Department of the University of Lagos as a Lecturer II. Prof. Akinsete was the pioneer of Renewable Energy Research in Nigeria in the 1970s and 1980s. He was an active participant in the deliberations of the 2nd Symposium on "Science and Technology in National Development" organised by the Nigerian Council for Science and Technology in 1973. Professor Akinsete was a member of the Technical Committee on Air Conditioning, Refrigeration and Ventilation set up by the Standards Organization of Nigeria. He was appointed Professor of Mechanical Engineering in 1978 and retired from the University of lagos in 1985.
Professor Akinsete participated in various engineering activities in Nigeria. He was involved with the formation of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in Port Harcourt. During his tenure as the Technical Secretary of NSE in the 1970s he restructured the Engineering journal of the Society to an internationally acceptable standard. He was also a Chairman of the Mechanical Division of NSE in the 1980s and during his tenure he mooted and championed the idea of building a Nigerian automobile car. This resulted in the funding, by Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFFRI) under AVM Larry Koinyan and the Consulting Director, Engr. Professor Gabriel A. Makanjuola, of component parts at the Ahmadu Bello University and Kwara State Polytechnic with a prototype motorised tricycle vehicle by Addis Engineering in Lagos. These were the early efforts that ultimately resulted in the present day Automotive Research Council in Nigeria.
He was a COREN registered engineer in Nigeria (Regn. No. 0293) and served on some COREN University accreditation teams to University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and the University of Benin. Internationally, Prof Alaba Akinsete was a member of the following professional associations: Institute of Fuel, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute, American Society for Heating, Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Engineers, and a Chartered Engineer of the United Kingdom. He was a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers and the Nigerian Academy of Engineering with specialization in Thermo - fluids, Renewable energy and Energy management.
As part of his service to Nigeria, Professor Alaba Akinsete was a participant, member and/or chairman of several committees, amongst which were:
i) Federal Government delegate to the 9th Biennial meeting of the
Commonwealth Science Council held in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
ii) International Advisory Committee for the first International meeting
on "Pollution: Engineering and Scientific Solution", held in
Tel - Aviv in 1970.
iii) Chairman, Technical Committee on Air-conditioning, Refrigeration and Ventilation of Standard Organisation of Nigeria.
iv) Technical Secretary and member of Council, Nigerian Society of
Engineers (NSE) and Editor, the "Nigerian Engineer" - Journal of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (1974 - 1978).
v) Member, Standing Committee of the OAU / STRC Inter-African
Committee on Solar Energy.
vi) Member of an Advisory Panel to the Honorable Commissioner
for Mines and Power on the Restructuring of the Electricity
Supply Industry in Nigeria.
He was a Principal Partner of FINCO ENGINEERS, a firm of Electrical, Mechanical and Industrial Engineers. Some of the notable projects by the firm include the Design of the Nicon Noga Hilton Hotel in Abuja, the Aluminium Smelter Company at Ikot Abasi in Akwa Ibom State and the Exxon Mobil building at the Victoria Island in Lagos.
Professor Alaba Akinsete was also an active member of the Rotary Club in Nigeria. He was the District Governor of Rotary District 9110 between 2003 and 2004 with the theme, "Lend a Hand".
He was married to Professor Mrs Ibironke Akinsete, a daughter of the Daddy Alaja family of Lagos and a retired Professor of Haematology at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos. Between them they have four lovely children: Abiola, Omobosola, Temilola and Babalola.
Professor Vincent Alaba Akinsete translated on Wednesday, August 16, 2018. May the Almighty God continue to guide his gentle Soul.