The Vice-Chancellor of the Niger State-owned Ibrahim Badamasi
Babangida (IBBU), Lapai, Niger State, Prof Ibrahim Kolo has accused
development agencies and manufacturing industries of not utilising
research findings by scholars from the nation’s Ivory Towers to fast
track the country development.
Speaking during the university’s first inaugural lecture, the Vice-
Chancellor noted that researches carried out in many areas of human
endeavors with proven solutions by many scholars are abound but lamented
that such findings are not being developed for the benefit of the
country by our industries, development and government agencies.
Kolo said: ”In Nigeria, there is disconnect between what the
universities are doing in the area of research and what development
agencies are doing. Government is supposed to build on what the
university researchers have done, but that is not the case. The fact is
there can be no development without researchers input.
"IBBUL like other universities has the mandate to teach and carry out
researches in various areas of human endeavour. The sad aspect is that
our development agencies and industries are not utilizing these
findings. In developed countries findings of researches carried out by
their universities are improved upon, but here we are yet to do that”.
The don cited the feat recorded by the Federal University of
Technology, Minna in developing Typhoid fever vaccine, but lamented that
nothing has been done by various developmental agencies and companies
on it after years of research and findings.
In order to remain relevant and in an effort to fulfill its mandate
Kolo said that IBBUL lecturers, researchers and students are encouraged
to carry out researches into areas of relevance to the state in
particular and Nigeria.
In his 55-page lecture titled ”Mycotoxins: are they the silent
killers,” Gbodi, a Professor of Toxicology noted that Mycotoxins have
dealt a great havoc on the food sector of the economy, stressing that
livestock and farm produce are worst hit, as it takes its toll on the
health and economy of the people and country. |