Olumide Longe, a professor of Computing and Information Systems Security, on Friday in Ota, Ogun State, urged universities to embrace research and innovation, saying this will ultimately lead to an improvement in the country’s ranking in the global technology space.
The senior lecturer, Academic, City University College, Accra, Ghana disclosed this while delivering the 14th convocation lecture of Bells University of Technology, Ota.
Speaking on the theme of the lecture: “Disruptive Technologies: Repositioning Universities For Emerging Innovations”, the don stressed the need for Nigerian universities to focus on human-centred research and innovations.
He posited that this will lead to producing solutions to the myriad of challenges of development and problems of disruptive technology.
“Research and innovation must be taken seriously as a focal point in our institutions to be relevant and recognised globally. The universities should come up with innovation and research that would shake the world”.
Prof. Longe called for the upgrade of curriculum, and adoption of new methods of teaching styles and pedagogical approaches, saying all these and more must be adjusted for universities to contribute to the discourses and emerging technologies, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Longe appealed to the federal government for increased funding of the education sector at all levels, adding that the degree of investment in infrastructure across private and public universities remains abysmally low by international standards.
The decried the inadequacy of don funds earmarked for basic research, which he lamented constituted a disadvantage to research centres.
Longe emphasised the need for the university system to respond to the many and diverse demands of society and advise the graduands to be bold and courageous as they had been equipped with skills as solution providers.
The convocation continues tomorrow Saturday, November 5 with the admission to first degrees for direct entry and regular graduates.
This will be followed by the conferment of the honourary degree, award of higher degrees and diplomas and presentation of prizes to deserving graduates of the first private University of Technology.
The University produced 47 graduates with First-Class grades among the 823 that would be conferred with.
