Efem N. Ubi is a Professor of International Relations/Strategic Studies and China-Africa Studies. He holds a BSc. in Political Science and a Master's in Public Administration (MPA) from the University of Calabar, Nigeria. He has another MSc. in International Relations and Strategic Studies from the University of Jos, Nigeria, and a Ph.D. in Contemporary International Relations from the prestigious Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.

Professor Ubi is presently the Director of Studies at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Lagos. He was formerly the Ag. Director of Research and Studies (2020-2024). Additionally. He is also a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Institute of African Studies at Zhejiang Normal University in China. In 2021, he was appointed the “First Academic Committee Board Member” of the Collaborative Innovation Center, Zhejiang Provincial Council/Ministry of Education, PR China. He is presently a Visiting Professor in the Department of History and International Relations Graduate School, at Elizade University in Ilare-Mokin, Ondo State. Professor Ubi is also Guest Lecturer at some Strategic institutions in Nigeria, such as the National Defence College (NDC), Abuja, Nigeria; the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, and the National Institute for Security Studies (NISS), Bwari, Abuja.

Ubi has received numerous prestigious awards throughout his career. He is an alumnus of the United States' prestigious International Visitors Leadership Program (US-IVLP). Other Notable Awards include the “China-Nigeria Friendship Award”, presented in 2024 by the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Lagos, Nigeria. He is a recipient of the “October 1st Award of China-Nigeria Friendship” presented by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Nigeria in 2021. In 2015, he received the Foreign Talent Introduction Program from the Zhejiang Provincial Administration of Foreign Expert Affairs in Zhejiang Province, China. He was appointed and commissioned as an “Ambassador of Goodwill” by the State of Arkansas, United States, in 2008. Ubi is also widely traveled across the globe for conferences, workshops, roundtables, and to present Lectures.

Professor Ubi's recent publications include, but are not limited to: Nigeria: The Absence of National Identity? Political Identity and African Foreign Policies, Boulder, USA: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2024; China and Africa’s Peace and Security: Examining China’s role in Nigeria’s insecurity, Routledge, 2020; Pre-Emptive Peace and Security Approach in Africa-China Security Cooperation. The Beacon Journal, 2022-23. Pakistan Navy War College, 2024; Is Liberal Democracy Failing in Africa or Is Africa Failing Under Liberal Democracy?” (Co-authored), Taiwan Journal of Democracy, 2019. Other publications include: Terrorism and Counterterrorism in Nigeria: The Domestic and Foreign Policy Dimensions – (Essays in Memory of Professor Ogaba Danjuma Oche) (co-edited Book), NDA and NIIA Press, 2022 (Edited); US-Africa Policy under President Obama: 2020. Lagos: Nigerian Institute of International Affairs Press, 2020 (Edited); Perspectives on Nigeria Contemporary Nigerian Politics and International Relations: Essays in Honour of Professor Warisu Oyesina Alli. Kaduna and Lagos: Nigerian Defence Academy Press and Nigerian Institute of International Affairs Press, 2020 (Co-Edited)

Professor Efem N. Ubi is happily married to Ms. Connie Efem Ubi, and together they have a wonderful daughter.