Reposition Science Technological Education to be globally relevant, YABATECH Rector tells FG

Rector of the Yaba College of Technology, Dr. Margret Ladipo, has urged the federal government to reposition science and technical education in order for the country to be relevant globally.

She said this while addressing journalists at the pre-convocation press conference as part of the activities to mark the 70th anniversary of the polytechnic which is coming alongside the convocation for the award of Diplomas and Certificates for graduands of the 2015/2016 session slated for October 19, 2017 where she stressed the need to bridge skill gap in order to reduce unemployment in the country.

According to the Rector, the institution, which was established in 1947 as Yaba Technical Institute to pioneer higher education in Nigeria, has concentrated only on investing in human capital adding that the impact of technical education cannot be overemphasized in the development of any nation technologically.

“One of the core objectives of YABATECH is to produce manpower for the technological development of the nation. The institution is meant for competency based education and not just paper test and that is why we encourage our students to become entrepreneurs rather than seeking for white collar jobs after graduation,” she said.

The Rector disclosed that several programmes are lined up for the anniversary such as the Alumni Association national workshop on Tuesday, 17th October, 2017 on the theme ‘Business Financing in a Growing Economy.’

The convocation lecture which is titled “Repositioning Science and Technological Education in Nigeria for Global Relevance” will be delivered by Dr Emeka Epuh of the University of Lagos on October 18, 2017 followed by the award of OrdinRY National Diploma to about 6,461 students and Higher National Diploma to 2,560 graduating students.

“During this anniversary, people will have the benefit of listening to step by step reportage of the programmes through Radio YABATECH –The Voice of Technology on FM 89.3 which is the latest baby on campus. This signals the beginning of another epoch for the College at another level,” she said.

Esther Taiwo