Let’s seize all opportunities, Egbewole tells Unilorin staff
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, Prof. Wahab Olasupo Egbewole, SAN, has implored the University staff to always strive to seize all opportunities for their benefit and that of the institution in general.
Prof. Egbewole made these remarks in his office last Monday (May 13, 2024), when he received two of the University scholars, who had just returned from Pakistan, where they participated in the Genetic Modified Organisms (GMO) training at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. The training held between May 6 and 11, 2024.
The Vice-Chancellor praised the duo of Dr Bankole Folusho, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, and Dr Khadijat Abdulhamid Abddulkareem of the Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, for their enthusiasm about the training despite the challenges and uncertainties surrounding the one-week notice to attend the event.
Prof. Egbewole expressed hope that more academics in the University would be enthusiastic about seizing any opportunity that presents itself, saying “you must first love it to be able to feel it before you can expand it. It is the love that these amazing scholars have for their fields and the University that propelled them to be determined to be there despite the serious challenges they encountered”.
The Vice Chancellor said that the visit of the Unilorin scholars to Pakistan marked a significant milestone in the life of the most sought-after University because it will be the beginning of many more good things to come.
He said, “When we had the opportunity to be part of D-8, the impression was that why were we still making efforts to be part of such an organisation. It is because for us, collaboration is essential to university administration. This is just a tip of the iceberg. Despite the fact that we have not joined D-8 completely, we have started benefiting from the relationship. The fact that we were the only university from Nigeria that was invited means a lot to us as management. The programme was just one week, but it could be a week that would transform the entire career of the beneficiaries”.
The Vice Chancellor, who appreciated Dr Bankole and Dr. Abddulkareem for being good ambassadors of the University of Ilorin and Nigeria, said, “Because it is one thing to nominate people for initiatives like this, it is another thing to see commitment and passion from such nominees”. He added, “I am thrilled that you were already preparing to share what you learned to ensure the University benefits from what you were taught”.
While urging the two scholars to ensure that the knowledge gained is not limited to research only, Prof. Egbewole said, “You must impact our university community, students, and other staff who are not necessarily from your disciplines. For me, if we spent double the amount we spent, we cannot quantify the extent of the exposure, the network, and collaborations we are about to secure with various universities across the world as well as other things that are coming for us in terms of staff exchange”.
Speaking earlier, the Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences, Prof. Patricia Folakemi Omojasola, expressed gratitude to the Vice Chancellor and the University management for sponsoring their colleagues to the training, which resulted from the D-8 consortium partnership. She said the unexpected invitation and staff participation felt like magic and it showcased the administration’s commitment to ensuring that any staff member of the University can benefit from any available opportunity.
While acknowledging the significant financial investment made by the University on the training, Prof. Omojasola assured the management that it was money well spent, considering the positive outcomes of the programme and the promising future opportunities awaiting the University.
Also speaking, the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Oluyemisi Bolajoko Fawole, expressed confidence that the investment of the management led by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Egbewole, would not be wasted.
Meanwhile, the beneficiaries of the training, Dr Abddulkareem and Dr Bankole, couldn’t hide their excitement as they expressed gratitude and appreciation to the University management for the opportunity to advance their career and research areas.
The duo pledged that the knowledge gained from the workshop would be transmitted to their students and colleagues in their respective Faculties towards ensuring that the benefits are shared within the academic community.
Dr Abddulkareem said she was thrilled with the way things unfolded. “When the Dean informed me that I have been nominated to attend the workshop, I was excited because it presented an opportunity to delve into a new field that has garnered significant attention”.
Dr Bankole also appreciated the potential of the new approach of gene editing, which promises results within a few years compared to the conventional method that typically takes about 20 years to release a variety. “We have released two varieties of maize; we initiated the process for one in 2007, and the result came out in 2020. However, with this new technology, we can develop more varieties within a shorter time frame,” she explained.
She described the experience as first-class throughout, saying, it was her first time benefiting from such an initiative, where she had the opportunity to interact with scholars from different countries who expressed interest in collaborating with the University of Ilorin.
Meanwhile, responding to requests for more molecular laboratories in the University, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Management Services), Prof. Suleiman Folorunsho Ambali, encouraged researchers to utilise the existing molecular labs spread across Faculties in the University.
He noted that researchers should feel free to visit any Faculty whenever they have tasks to carry out in the molecular labs and interact with colleagues in those Faculties.
The Professor of Environmental Toxicology, however, highlighted the importance of genetically modified food in addressing future food crises in Nigeria, noting its ability to replicate easily and provide solutions for disease resistance and shorter germination periods.
Joining the Vice Chancellor to welcome the Unilorin scholars back home was the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research Technology and Innovation), Prof. Adegboyega Adisa Fawole; the Director of Corporate Affairs, Mr Kunle Akogun; and the Deputy Registrar, Office of the Vice Chancellor, Mrs Azeezat Ibrahim.