Nigeria’s premier university, the University of Ibadan, UI, Ibadan, has expressed readiness and excitement towards Town-Gown collaboration with Odu’a Investment Company Limited, for national development.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, DVC, (Academic), University of Ibadan, Professor Aderonke Baiyeroju, described the proposition for stakeholders collaboration with the instituion towards the promotion of Town-Gown cooperation as sweet music to the ears of the university management.
She spoke on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Kayode Adebowale, while receiving a team from Odu’a Investment Company Limited, OICL, which was on a courtesy call to the office of the Vice-Chancellor.
Professor Baiyeroju reiterated that the UI is always ready to embrace town-gown collaborations through linkages, strategic partnerships, and cooperation with industries and multinational companies like the OICL to contribute to national development.
The DVC noted that UI, as the premier university in Nigeria, is proud of her legacies of excellence, hard work, and highly placed researchers, saying research in UI is top notch, and the institution has zero tolerance for plagiarism and bad workmanship, which has earned it a high ranking among other institutions globally.
She disclosed that since the university could no longer depend solely on government funding, which, according to her, was not sufficient to run the university, it has to rely on grants, interventions from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, and benefactions from its alumni, corporate organisations, philanthropists, and well-meaning individuals, to meet the shortfall in government funding.
Prof. Baiyeroju stressed that “the university needs the industry to utilise what is being produced in the laboratories, saying UI is always ready to embrace town-gown collaborations”.
She solicited the support of OICL in the development of UI through corporate social responsibility, assuring that in collaborating with the university, the company will get value for its investment and the institution will strengthen continuous strategic partnerships and sustain the relationships.
The DVC declared that in exploring the strategic partnership, the pact would be established through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which would incorporate town-gown collaborations with faculties in UI and Odu’a Investment Company Limited.
Speaking earlier, the Group Managing Director and the Chief Executive Officer of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, Mr Abdulrahman Yinusa, commended the university management for maintaining academic excellence and providing social services to the society.
He explained that the visit, which marked one year of his assumption in office as the Group Managing Director & CEO, was to seek strategic partnerships and collaborations with UI because he believes that the gown and town need to collaborate and interact as key stakeholders of the nation.
He explained that “the company is a conglomerate with substantial investments in real estate, hospitality, equipment leasing, agriculture and agribusiness, construction and manufacturing, financial services, digital technology, and oil & gas, stating that the company is also exploring opportunities in other key sectors such as energy, logistics, health care, and mining”.
The GMD/CEO said that the organisation is owned by the six states of Southwest Nigeria, and the goal is not just to make money but to fulfil the quest of making meaningful social impact.
In addition, the Company Secretary/Head of Legal, Mrs Abiola Ajayi, revealed that Odu’a Investment Company Foundation, focuses on three pillars: education, health, and youth empowerment.
She said; “efforts were being made by the Foundation to ensure that digital education is taken to the grassroots, disclosing that ICT Centers were being established in rural areas, hence the need for collaborative efforts with the university to train teachers in the digital field and provide technical assistant”.
Ajayi noted that the company has also been involved in activities to reduce mortality rate through the provision of access to basic healthcare services and periodic checkups for people in low class areas, saying the company was also seeking collaboration with the Department of Computer Science to train 3,000 secondary school teachers in order to train others in their local government areas and impact the students as well.
She added that the company also seeks strategic partnerships with the university’s Faculty of Agriculture in the area of food processing and storage of farm produce.
The five-man team visiting delegation also included: Engr Olusoji Sangobiyi (Technical Assistant to the Group Managing Director on Special Projects), Mr Victor Ayetoro (Head, Branding and Communication) and Mr Kazeem Oguntoyinbo (Branding and Communication Manager).
Olusola Akintonde