OSUSTECH VC, Akingbule task scientists on Nigeria’s devt

From Victor Akinkuolie, Ado-Ekiti
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Nigerian Scientific  community, leading Scientists, technology experts and the various Universities of Technology have been called upon to pull together their knowledge and expertise in an integrated manner that could  bail  the  country out of her underdevelopment .

The call was made by a Fellow of the Chartered Association of International Accountants (FCIA),  Sir Ayo Akingbule and the Vice Chancellor of the Ondo State University of Science and Technology, OSUSTECH, Okitipupa, Prof Sunday Robert Ogunduyile during the University’s Faculty of Science First Annual Conference.

Akingbule who was the Chairman of the  occasion posited that for Nigeria to develop, it must toe this path which he said  developed countries such as Britain, USA among others toed, using scientific innovations by  their experts to bring sustainable development to their nations.

Akingbule posited that the greatness of a nation is not what is deposited in its soil as national endowments but in the brain of her people.

He blamed the failure of Nigeria to have developed 59 years after independence on the poor management  of the proceeds from oil and the  neglect of the once vibrant agricultural sector  which had great potential at independence.

His words: Our    country at Independence was a potentially great country as the economy was basically agrarian.

The three regions were noted for great exploits in the agricultural sector, we were able to feed our people, exported many cash crops and earned income from our produce.

The intervention in the governance of the country  caused a lot of setback. The regional government was abolished. Our values deteriorated and the zeal for development suffered a great set back”.

According to him, the bulk of the revenue earned from oil sales were spent on importation of rice, sugar, toilet rolls, clothing materials and  expensive luxuries instead of promoting home grown industries.

He noted that  during the oil boom, the people abandoned the farm, while common palm oil was allowed to be imported to  the   country and gradually, the country began to record huge slide in eternal reserve and became  a debtor nation.

Akingbule who also decried the level of corruption, tribalism and nepotism in the country added that “economists refer to the co-existence of  vast wealth in natural resources and extreme personal poverty in developing countries like Nigeria as the “resource curse”.

He therefore called for sensitization of the people on scientific innovation and training required for the nation’s sustainable  development.

The Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof Sunday Robert Ogunduyile, in his address noted that science and innovation are crucial for overcoming obstacles in the  country towards eradicating poverty and achieving  sustainable development, and in finding new approaches which identify, define and confront global challenges.

He said the first annual Conference tagged “Sustainable Development through Scientific Innovations: Problems and Prospects”, was to help chart the way for Nigeria’s development.

He charged other faculties and centres in the institutions to begin to replicate the idea.

According to him, the conference was packaged with a wide range of topics in relation to the  sustainable development goals of the Nigerian government and the global concern for development.

The VC noted that this can not be achieved by government alone. :”Its  achievement requirs many different actors including the scientific community like OSUSTECH, to work together in an integrated manner by pooling together and  harnessing our  knowledge and expertise.

He emphasized the importance of the participation of leading scientists, technology experts and innovators in the discourse.

Plenary speakers at the occasion were;  Prof. Pius Enikanselu,  FUTA, Dr. Afolabi Festus Oluwole, Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Wahab Adegbenro, and Host  and initiator of the conference is the Dean, Faculty of Science, Prof. Moses Folarin.