Kwara State Governor, Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed has established a N10m Abdulfatah Ahmed Indigent Student Support Fund in the faculties of Physical Sciences and Life Sciences at his alma mater, the University of Ilorin, Kwara State.
Governor Ahmed who announced this at the 40th anniversary and 31st convocation ceremony of the University explained that the support fund will provide the sum of N100,000 each to twenty indigent students of the two faculties every year.
He expressed the hope that the support fund expected to start from 2015/2016 academic year will encourage indigent students and expand access to quality higher education that the University of Ilorin provides.
The governor charged the University to engage in indigenous and innovative research that will address socio-economic problems confronting Nigeria. According to him, such an approach will put the university in the global network of research leading institutions as well as put the country on the list of technologically driven countries.
“I recommend greater synergy between the academia and the private sector for viable research in areas relevant to the economic and technological aspirations of our country.
Current changes in global economy make it imperative that we turn out graduates who are strongly equipped to face today’s challenges. The challenge before our tertiary institutions is not only to award degrees to deserving students, but to also turn-out skilled, innovative and resourceful graduates that will drive economic growth”.
The governor was of the view that qualitative education will develop not only human capacity for socio-economic development but also properly equipped people to confront challenges.
“I hold that the quality and effectiveness of high education are related to the capacity of society to develop. Thus education is important to human and socio development and serves as a vehicle for socio-economic and political change by empowering the nation’s human capital resources with the necessary skills and attitude to confront current and future challenges”.
Gov. Ahmed, who graduated from the University of Ilorin in 1986, said the University in 40 years has “contributed to human development and growth in the society, which is evident in the quality of her alumni that have excelled in almost every sphere of human endeavour”.
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