This came as former head of interim government, Chief Ernest Shonekan and the Ondo State governor Dr Olusegun Mimiko were awarded honorary doctorate degrees by the University
President Jonathan who spoke at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, FUTA, during its 23rd convocation, said quality manpower and impactful research were necessary ingredients to boost the nation’s march towards economic growth and development.
Speaking through the Executive Secretary, Nigerian University Commission, NUC, Professor Julius Okojie, President Jonathan said “Our education administrators need to urgently address the importance of research, which is one reason our universities perform poorly in international ratings.
We must upgrade our curricula to ensure the provision of quality education. Learning at tertiary levels should produce graduates that are self-reliant. We must equip our students with knowledge that will make them active contributors to national development.
We also expect to see research products that will improve our lives. Nigerians want a total break from the grapple of diseases, poverty and hunger. Our farmers want improved seedlings and need storage technology for their yields, while our artisans want simple tools and implements to aid their work.”
President Jonathan urged administrators of universities to focus attention to courses that could make graduates, creators of jobs rather than joining the pool of unemployed youths in the labour market, saying “We now need graduates who are problem-solvers and job creators, and whose characters will be enviable and unimpeachable at all times.”
He added that federal government would soon establish a special mechanism to rate each university in the country based on the quality of their products, particularly in terms of the quality of their graduates and research outputs.
In his in his remarks, Chief Shonekan said many universities in the country had conducted series of researches that could turn around the nation’s fortunes, but lamented that “it is regrettable to note that many of such researches are yet to be turned to the private sector for actualization. is therefore a need for a technology incubation centre in the universities where new technological inventions can be commercialized”
On his part, Governor Mimiko stressed the need to encourage skill acquisition through the introduction of entrepreneurial courses, which would be of tremendous advantage in the diversification of employment possibilities after graduation.
He said “The Ondo State government is using both Agriculture and Information Communication Technology as intervention mediums to mop up a significant number of productive hands from the unemployment market.”
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