The Vice-Chancellor, Lagos State University, Ojo, Prof. Olanrewaju Fagbohun, has said the institution has secured the hosting of the Africa Centre of Excellence to be located on its campus and funded by the World Bank.
He disclosed this during the long service award organised by the university to reward staff that had worked with the institution since inception.
According to him, the institution is the only state university among the 17 universities across the world that got the centre.
The centre, according to him, is aimed at creating knowledge for development within the country and the world.
“The centre of excellence is going to be looking at creating knowledge from what postgraduate students will be doing, to address aggressively the development solutions to meet gaps within the system, especially in Africa,” Fagbohun said.
On sustainability, the VC said the university management had a detailed proposal on how it intended to sustain it after the funding by the World Bank.
“Part of what we intend to do is to put in place the tradition whereby foreign students and foreign faculties members will be part of what we are doing such that we would have created the appropriate credibility for different programmes that we are running so that after the exit of the World Bank we will be able to continue with the centre,” he disclosed.
On the peace within the university system, Fagbohun said it was a result of good working relationship between the management and the staff.
“You can see that there is closeness between our unions and the management, between members of staff across boards. We have actually been able to identify the issues between us and how to resolve them,” he said.
The VC said the long service award, which cut across different categories, had those that had served between 20 to 24 years, 25 to 29 years and the third category, 30 years and above.
Fagbohun said the ceremony was organised to appreciate these sets for their commitment and contribution since the inception of the institution.
“And with the gesture, I feel people will know if they are loyal to a system, if they add value to a system certainly this system will recognise and compensate them. Even though it is a token, they will be appreciated,” he said.
Thanking the staff for their support since he assumed office three years ago, the VC said the university had attained its place among world class universities.
The Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council, Prof. Adebayo Ninalowo, in his remarks, said with the location of Africa Centre of Excellence in the university, it was a sign of more good things to come.
“It’s a measure of global recognition and, of course, obviously beyond the shores of our country in terms of appreciation and recognition of what we have been able to do over the years, particularly within the past three years and ,of course, an inspiration and incentive to do more,” he said.
He urged the awardees to continue to be committed and dedicated to service.
Over 400 staff were rewarded for their dedication to work and for serving the university since
inception.
