The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has advocated for a collaboration between private business owners and Nigerian universities to shape academic curricula towards promoting investment in talents and innovation.
NESG, while describing the academic as the gown and the private sector as Town, said that joint research projects between the two sectors will promote sustainable economic growth and development in the country.
The Chairman of NESG, Olaniyi Yusuf, made the call while speaking as a guest lecturer at the 2023/2024 Annual Lecture of the School of Postgraduate Studies, University of Lagos, yesterday.
Yusuf spoke on “Innovative Strategies: Harnessing the power of collaboration between postgraduate education and private sector for sustainable economic growth”.
“Academic curricula should incorporate practical skills and knowledge through real world problems and case studies.
“Establishing this with industry stakeholders is essential to keep educational programmes aligned with industry trends and technological advancements,” Yusuf added.
The NESG chairman noted that many Nigerian universities were suffering from underfunding.
He added that under funding was limiting the ability of the universities to invest in research and development programmes to make them attractive for private sector collaboration.
“We need to create funding programmes to establish joint initiatives that will encourage co-investment from academia, alumni and industry.
“Tertiary education is essential for personal development and societal progress especially in the context of Nigerian economy,” Yusuf said.
The Chairman, Channels Media Group, Dr John Momoh, stated that the role of education could not be underestimated in the country.
Mommoh, the chairman of the occasion, noted that postgraduate school had helped to cultivate advanced knowledge and critical thinking to develop the country.
“Private sector is the engine of the economic growth, which is why collaboration between universities and research institutions is very important.
“We need more innovations from the two sectors which must be driven by research.
“The future of our nation depends on the decisions we make now,” he said.
In her opening remarks, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, Vice-Chancellor, UNILAG, said that the theme of the lecture was timely and transformative.
She said that there was a need to bridge the gap between knowledge and practice.
“Indeed, the power of education lies not only in acquisition of knowledge, but its application to solve world problems. It also inspires change to create a better future.
“Tertiary education is changing rapidly; we have to be more intentional in meeting the developmental needs of the country.
“The research that comes out from postgraduate school should not only be about finding the problems, but also about finding solutions to these problems,” she said.
Ogunsola said that research and innovation must have potential to transform the world.
Prof. Abraham Osinubi, Dean of School of Postgraduate, UNILAG, said that the theme of the lecture was a clarion call for action.
He added that there was the need to forge a path for a future where knowledge would meet enterprise and academic rigours would translate into economic resilience.
Osinubi said that in an era defined by rapid technological advancements and shifting economic paradigms, the role of postgraduate education was more critical.
“It is the bedrock upon which we build the knowledge economy; a reservoir of innovation and creativity.
“For this reservoir to overflow and nourish our society, it must be channelled into the broader economy through deliberate and strategic collaboration with the private sector,” he said.
