The Nation Newspaper

Tag: UI

  • ‘Nigeria not conducive for learning’

    ‘Nigeria not conducive for learning’

    Professor of Education, Bayo Okunade, has said the country is not conducive for learning.

    Okunade, who doubles as the Director of Distance Learning Centre, University of Ibadan (UI), said the education system has been very unfair to students.

    He spoke at the third joint matriculation ceremony of Foreign Links Campus, Moro, Ife North, Osun State.

    Okunade said: “Education is a global commodity. There can’t be local standard.”

    Commenting on the mass failure of students in the last Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination, the director said students were not exposed to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) early enough, thereby making some of them to have failed the examination even before they started.

    He said: “If our politicians were more humane and public oriented, with the aim to serve, Nigeria would have been a better nation for us all, as every kobo misappropriated translates to denial of certain necessary basic amenity.”

     

  • Education students elect leaders

    Education students elect leaders

    The Nigerian Universities Education Students’ Association (NUESA) at the University of Ibadan (UI) has elected new leaders to steer the affairs of the association in the new academic session. The election was conducted through an e-voting system.

    The office of president was keenly contested by three aspirants from Department of Teacher Education, Department of Kinetic and Health Education and Department of Special Education.

    Olalekan Oladiran, 300-Level student of Special Education, polled 273 votes to emerge as president.

    Others are Vice-President, Halimat Agboluaje; General Secretary, Saheed Jimoh; Assistant General Secretary, Idoharia Eruag; Financial Secretary, Christopher Iseo; Treasurer, Tolulope Fagbeja; Social Director, Oyeleye Oyedayo; Sports Director, Yusuf Ibraheem; Public Relations Officer, Samuel Oluwatosin and Oluwaseun Amoo, Academic and Welfare Director.

    The President, Nigerian Association of Computer Science Students (NACOSS), UI Chapter, Faruk Salami, who coordinated the e-voting exercise, said the software was designed by former executives of the association.

    Salami identified unstable power supply and poor internet facility as major hindrances facing the e-voting software, calling on government to improve the nation’s power sector.

     

     

  • Don urges Nursing Council on education

    •Advocates first degree for nurses

    A Psychiatric and a Mental Health Nursing expert at the Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Prof. Joseph Aina, has urged the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to initiate reforms in the education of nurses, to meet the global standards and realities.

    He spoke yesterday at the Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan (UI), during the opening of the 3rd North American Nursing Diagnosis Association (NANDA) International Conference, organised in conjunction with the UI Department of Nursing.

    Delivering a keynote address titled: “Nursing Diagnosis, Implementation and Outcome in Nursing Education, Strategies for Effective Nursing Practice”, Aina said nursing education standard should be raised to a level where at least 80 per cent of practising nurses would hold a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree.

    “Since we are practising a lot of systems borrowed from the United States of America, we can also borrow ideas from their health policies. America aims at ensuring that by 2020, at least 80 per cent of their nurses will have a minimum of Bachelor’s degree. Nursing should be given that seriousness in Nigeria.

    “The bulk of health care activity rests on the shoulders of nurses, hence the need to tackle inadequacies suffered in terms of resources for education and research. The lack of adequate continuing education is a major challenge for us. The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria as well as the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives should look into this,” he said.

    According to him, the number of degree- awarding nursing institutions in the country was inadequate, adding that nurses required university education to become whole.

    Aina said: “Of 196 nursing schools, only 15 are degree-awarding. Seventy four are doing hospital-based programmes, while 23 are offering basic midwifery courses, with just four being post basic midwifery. This is still low.”

    Delivering a lecture titled: “Nursing Diagnosis: Past, Present and Future”, a guest lecturer and member of the NANDA International Education and Research Committee, Dr. Marcelo Chanes, said nursing had evolved to become an academic affair.

     

  • UI, Asian Varsity exchange students

    UI, Asian Varsity exchange students

    The University of Ibadan’s Centre for Sustainable Development (CESDEV) has partnered with some Asian universities on a student exchange programme.

    The Director of UI’s CESDEV, Prof Labode Popoola, made this known at a briefing in Bodija, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    He said Nigeria, and indeed Africa’s thirst for real development, was hinged on a programme that breaks disciplinary and continental boundaries the same manner the centre was doing with the global field exercise, which started in Japan.

    The programme, he said, was aimed at creating “complete” leaders that can apply diverse methods to developmental and governmental issues.

    Popoola said: “Asia may be a continent of developed countries or a few emerging economies but, in truth, there are some things that we lost in the course of all that development. Coming to Nigeria, I saw those things and I wished we had it.

    “It’s important for students to employ multi-disciplinary approach to development studies. If we do that, we’ll begin to see sustainable development. That is the beauty of the programmes we have in CESDEV.

    “These students, in the past 11 days, have been exploring multi-disciplinary subjects that affect development. They’ve been dealing with environmental protection, agriculture, food security issues and many more.”

    Popoola said prior to the students of the University of Tokyo visit to Nigeria, UI students had, between November and December, last year, spent more than two weeks in Japan, learning and sharing ideas with their counterparts.

    “Our students were in the University of Tokyo between November and December, last year, learning and sharing with students in Tokyo. Now, students from that university are here too to learn and share. That is the global nature and concept of development studies,” he said.

    Popoola described lack of electricity, poor awareness of the programme’s relevance, as well as disinterest from states in sponsoring students, as part of challenges confronting the programme.

    CESDEV is a postgraduate programme of UI, which according to the director, offers postgraduate diplomas, professional and academic masters as well as PhDs’.

    Prof. Masafumi Nagao, who led the University of Tokyo students to Nigeria, said the need to learn and share experience worldwide necessitated the deal.

    Nagao said: “Africa and Asia have a lot in common, yet each continent knows very little about each other. The idea is for students from both continents to collaborate to learn from one another’s point of view and build areas of social relevance.”

    According to him, the programme is similar to programmes run at the University of Tokyo, but he wished there was more money available to execute more of such trips to Nigeria and Africa.

    A 23-year-old undergraduate of the University of Tokyo, Tina Yamada said in the midst of Japan’s technological advancement, spectacular transport system and social organisation, the country still needs to borrow a leaf from the Third World.

    Her Nigerian counterpart, Tolu Adegbite, said: “I was in Tokyo, Japan in December for the exchange programme. In terms of development, Japan has more advanced technology and better transport system unlike Nigeria. But here, their is flexibility unlike Japan where life is rigid and more individualistic. But one similarity is that the two countries have the same education culture where people believe that young people can only excel and lead the future if they acquire education.”

     

  • UI, institute to enhance food security

    The University of Ibadan (UI) and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) have expressed their commitment to food security in Nigeria. The agreement was reached during a meeting in the office of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Isaac Adewole.

    Prof Adewole said both institutions have a common goal of enhancing food security, adding that university is deeply committed to partnerships that would enhance food security. He promised to make funds available to ensure the success of the programme. The Director General of the Institute, Dr Nteranya Sanginga, said IITA would contribute in technical aspect while the University of Ibadan would support in the aspect of training, adding that the programme was intended for the youth.

    Sanginga said that the Institute’s goal was to organise a programme in agro business where youths would be exposed to the opportunities in the sector.

    “This will help to reduce youth unemployment in the country,” Dr Sanginga said.

     

  • Boko Haram: UI, Army to research on solution

    Boko Haram: UI, Army to research on solution

    The Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan (UI), Prof Isaac Adewole, has said the fight against Boko Haram requires academic and strategic research.

    This is coming on the heels of the assurance by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) that the sect’s insurgency would end soon.

    But the sect, early in the week, killed scores of people, injured others and destroyed property in Adamawa and Borno states.

    Prof Adewole spoke yesterday when he visited Maj.-Gen. Ahmed Jibrin, the general officer commanding (GOC) 2 Division, at Ojoo, Ibadan, Oyo State. He said there was need for strategic research into the real reasons for the escalating violence.

    The vice chancellor proposed a framework in which UI would partner the Army to go into the “heart and soul” of the people and produce strategic methods of curbing the sect’s members.

    According to him, the declaration of the Chief of Defence Staff that the insurgency would end in April, was realisable, with new methods and strategic research.

    “The Chief of Defence Staff said the insurgency will end in April. I do not have the facts and information that he has. But, I believe that winning a war involves winning the heart and soul of the people. The university can partner the military to find out what are the real reasons for the insurgency,” Prof Adewole said.

    The vice chancellor also said the proposed partnership between the Army and UI’s Department of Strategic Studies would help in “re-teething and retooling” the military’s work force.

    Jibrin said there was a standing committee on land matters involving the military, including the university’s old site at Eleyele, Ibadan.

    The GOC said a final decision could not be taken immediately but promised to set up a committee that would liaise with the university and sort out the details.

  • UI, German firm plan solar plant

    UI, German firm plan solar plant

    The University of Ibadan (UI) is to partner with the Nigeria-German Energy Corporation to build a solar power plant for the institution to generate its own electricity.

    UI Vice-Chancellor, Prof Isaac Adewole disclosed this recently at a conference of German Academic Exchange Service, held at the international conference centre of the university.

    “The whole programme to me has been an outstanding one and has a lot to offer in the development of the university. One of it is that we have been able to resolve to develop a solar power plant for UI, and we believe that if we are able to get this done under the Nigeria German Energy Corporation, we shall become energy sufficient,” he said

    Apart from supplying power to the university, Adewole said the plant will also provide a platform for the university to run a programme in solar engineering.

    He said: “We believe that once this is on ground, it will be replicated in other universities, because as of today the Vice-Chancellors spend a large chunk of his time thinking about water and electricity, so we can put this aside once it is done, and we can have time to do other serious things.

    “We will also look at funding support, as it is going to be a pilot project. UI spends about N400 million on energy yearly. But when we delve into this, our savings will be huge, this is a power plant that can serve us for the next 25 years.”

    In his own remark, the Coordinator of Nigeria German Energy Partnership, Mr Jeremy Gaines, said the company seeks to create a win-win situation for both Nigeria and Germany, energy security for Germany, and power for Nigeria.

    “We all know that power is a critical factor lacking in Nigeria, and we have a mandate from Mr President to create 500 Mega Watts of solar power in the North. We shall create solar stations in there. We are also doing some power projects in the middle belt, in Plateau and Benue States.

    “UI will also benefit from this soon, because we have proposed to build a solar power plant for the university, and we will train the university on solar power and they shall start generation their electricity themselves and will not be paying for electricity again. We all know that most times they rely on diesel which is 30 percent expensive than solar.”Gaines explained

     

  • UI VC seeks better funding

    UI VC seeks better funding

    The Vice-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, (UI), Prof Isaac Adewole has called on the Federal Government to give special consideration to the funding of the premier university given the age and decay of its infrastructure.

    He spoke at a briefing in Ibadan on his third year in office.

    Adewole made a case for special funding for the institution given its status as the premier university which was established 14 years before others.

    He said considering that it has been in existence for 65 years, most of its infrastructure need replacement.

    For example, he said most of the water pipes laid 65 years ago were in bad shapes and need to be changed.

    While noting that the institution enjoys capital allocation from the government and endowments from individuals, international bodies and corporate organisations, he said UI still needs alternative funding sources outside government.

    He said efforts were on to institute income-generating projects for the university.

    Adewole who did not agree that there was rot in the education sector, said universities were not enough to accommodate eligible students.

    “More universities should be established to accommodate more applicants who could not be admitted by various universities in the country. Government alone cannot do it. We need to see education as necessary tool for development and avenue to generate money,” he said

    While admitting that there were challenges in the sector, he called for massive reconstruction right from the primary school level.

     

  • ICPC chair, others for honour

    The Abuja chapter of the University of Ibadan (UI) Alumni Association will on Saturday honour five of its distinguished members at its End-of-the-Year Dinner at the Rockview Royale Hotel in Abuja.

    Those to be given its “Distinguished Alumnus Award” are Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) Chairman Ekpo Nta; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Youth Development, Dr. Henry Akpan; Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie; legal titan Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN) and former Director-General of the National Lottery Regulatory Commission Peter Igoh. Chairman of the association Ismaila Alasa, in a statement, said the honourees were chosen for their contributions to the country’s growth.

    “These are accomplished individuals, who have done the university proud in their various fields of endeavour,” Alasa added.

  • UI lecturers, students shun classrooms

    Lecturers and students of the University of Ibadan (UI) yesterday stayed away from the campus.

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) lashed out at Dr Doyin Okupe, the Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan, for calling the union “enemy of the state”.

    The union urged the President to read its letter to know that it was not out to disrespect him but to give him more credibility.

    When our reporter visited the campus yesterday, the lecture rooms remained shut without any lecturer in sight. There was also no register for either the lecturers or students to sign.

    The union assembled its members at a congress and resolved not to sign any register.

    It urged the government to implement the agreement the union signed with it.

    The UI-ASUU Chairman Dr Olusegun Ajiboye said the union would ensure that the government funded public universities well.

    Ajiboye said the union respects the office of Mr President, adding that Dr Okupe and other sycophantic advisers were indirectly ridiculing the office through their unguarded utterances.

    Ajiboye said: “Nigerians should judge the true enemies of state between a person begging the owner of schools to fund it and the praise singers saying the government has released money, when it has not. Posterity is there to judge us all.”