Commonwealth Alumni seeks collaboration with UI

By Ibukun Emiola

The National President of the Commonwealth of Scholars and Fellows Alumni Association of Nigeria (COSFAN), Dr Ekundayo Samuel, has sought to collaborate with the University of Ibadan.

The collaboration according to Samuel, is to deepen the relationship between COSFAN and the university and to give back to the society what has been invested in the members.

The president of the association stated this in Ibadan on Tuesday during a courtesy call to the Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof. Kayode Adebowale and other  management team of the university.

The team was received by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Administration, Prof. Ezekiel  Ayoola, on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor.

Samuel said COSFAN members were noble and distinguished intellectuals who were making themselves available to serve the nation in all areas of specialisation.

He said this was with a mandate to give back to the Nigerian society what the British and Nigerian governments have invested in their careers.

He, therefore, called on the VC to take the unique opportunity to engage the pool of experts and professionals within and outside the university for excellent service delivery.

The VC, however, thanked the president and his team for the visit and assured them of the resolve of the present administration to engage all stakeholders for excellent service delivery because development comes only through the  collaborative efforts of all relevant stakeholders.

He also noted that although UI had been a top ranking University with well-known scholars globally, “UI still seeks and accepts collaborations with eminent scholars and associations like COSFAN.”

He gave assurance that the university would  look into the call for  collaboration with the association.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that COSFAN is a body  of eminent Nigerians who have enjoyed the sponsorship of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission, United Kingdom through the British Council in Nigeria, in their respective postgraduate academic pursuits or career enhancement from 1960 to date.

The main objective of COSFAN is to use the knowledge of indigenous and commonwealth training which members received both locally and overseas to impact Nigerian society especially in the areas of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), education being the foremost.

(NAN)