Stakeholders in the political, academia and business sector have converged in Abuja on Monday at the inaugural gown to town symposium 2022 organized by the University of Port Harcourt Alumni, Abuja Chapter to charge a way forward that seeks to produces more entrepreneurs as university graduates.
With the theme,” Graduate marketplace readiness as a tool for economic growth” participants noted that looking for white collar jobs after university has gradually kept most Nigerian university graduates poor and unable to cater for their needs long after graduating from the university.
Speaking at the symposium as the Keynote speaker, governorship candidate for Abia state under the Labour Party, Dr Alex Otti decried the poor state of Nigerian universities. Citing the 2022 Times ranking for universities, Otti adding that Nigerian universities were “moving in the wrong direction.”
According to him, Nigerian tertiary institutions has failed to produce graduates with the competencies to face the real world, saying many of today’s Nigerian graduates who enters and remain in the labour market has failed to find employment in the nation’s slow growth economy, universities should be an entrepreneurship incubators with a vibrant start-up culture where young people not only gain knowledge of their respective courses but also forge relationship and birth ideas that leads to establishment of businesses that ultimately create jobs.
He said beyond training and releasing graduates, they should be inculcated the entrepreneurial mindset to prepare them for the main world where their intellectual capability can indeed guarantee survival and excellence.
He expressed dissatisfaction on government investment on the teachers that are teaching the students, “how much does the government commit to the academic projects, how often do they assess lecturers and sponsor them on academic development, Lecturers are even owed salaries for months and even years, how will they inspire their students, how are the management and chancellors sell their school, do they do research?”.
He stressed that Nigeria universities has failed us so far, adding that the Nigerian University are being listed in the lower ranking in Africa and the world.
Also, the former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, a former vice-chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Emeritus Professor Nimi Briggs, and others have called on Nigerian universities to produce graduates that will create jobs.
Jonathan who was represented by Dr Stanley Lawson, the ex MD of Apex Bank Group, in his brief remarks said graduates must be trained to develop their experiences, saying there is a kind gap between learning and research and preparing the product of these universities for the outside world,” he said.
On his part, Briggs said universities are expected to produce manpower, research, identify new ways of doing things and impact the environment in which they find themselves.
“We are reminded that universities are established with great expectations. They are seen as huge assets. It is expected that universities change the environment in which they are in. They are expected to produce manpower, research, identify new ways of doing things, impact the environment in which they find themselves.
“Looking at all these, it is no wonder that universities are currently being challenged to justify their existence. There are ways in which universities can justify their existence. Instead of churning out graduates who end up roaming the streets, we can ensure that graduates are sufficiently endowed.
Also speaking, the chapter president, UNIPORT Alumni Association, Abuja, Phil Okoroafor, noted that the association decided to convene the gown-to-town symposium in other to enhance the marketplace readiness of graduates of the institution.
“Our gathering today is our first step in the direction of our relevance to our esteemed alma mater, the University of Port Harcourt. Envisioned as an annual event, the ‘Gown to Town’ symposium is designed as our modest contribution to the efforts towards enhancing the marketplace readiness of graduates of our esteemed alma mater.
“Our objective, as expressed in the simplicity of the name we have given the symposium, is to help bridge the gap between academia and industry through programmes that will promote entrepreneurship and creative thinking among our graduates.”
She however urged young people to take every time available to them as an opportunity to learn something new that will increase their market value upon graduation.
In a good will message, National President, UNIPORT Alumni, Pastor Ule Williams congratulated the Abuja Chapter on a successful outing adding that the National Association is elated.
‘‘Our alumni Association bothers on how we can network, integrating every alumnus/Alumnae, every chapter every class/ year on our platform of operations to see to the realization of what our dreams are. If, we take count from 1981 when we had our first set of graduates up till now we have over 40,000 members, so if every year we are able to put N1000 aside we will be able to raise N40m to assist our Alma mata and equally carry out one or two projects. By this simple crowd funding means ,Alumni presence/contribution will be visible and strong at every point. With the example a chapter like Abuja has shown it means our dreams can be achieved, that is our outlook.
‘‘I urge our young bees here to take relationships very seriously, we are in the year of entrepreneurs, white collar jobs will come but we need to take advantage of what is presently available to us. The critical realities are before us and we need to put into practice all that we have been thought, I believe that when we do this we will have a strong association, strong members, that will at every point in time contribute, that is our wish, that is our dream and let it become our reality
‘‘Once again, I congratulate the Abuja Chapter lead by Phil Okorafor’’ he said.
The symposium also involved a panel session with Award winning television anchor, Nancy Illoh Nnaji, Prof Yakubu Ochefu, Achinivu Okorafor and Bosun Ayeni as Moderator.