From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
A Ukrainian University, Lviv University of Business and Law, has conferred a doctorate degree to the minister of state for petroleum, Timipre Sylva, minister of interior, Rauf Aregbesola, and acting managing director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Abdullaziz Suleiman.
Others are permanent secretary, Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Borno State, Zanna Tarpaya Asarya; His Royal Majesty, Eze Uzo Nwosu, traditional ruler of Umukabia Ohuhu, Abia State; Mr. Adebayo Fagbemi, managing director of Nigeria Electricity and Liability Management Company (NELMCO), and Dr. Reuben Atabo, SAN.
Country representative of the school, Dr. Cliff Ogbede, in his remarks at the maiden lecture/award ceremony in Abuja, congratulated the awardees on the recognition and solicited that they be good ambassadors of the university wherever they are in the world.
Ogbede, thus, encouraged Nigerian students to take advantage of affordable education opportunity in the school to acquire quality knowledge that would strengthen and increase their opportunity and chances in global discussions.
He said: “Nigeria recognizes the importance of a skilled, competent workforce to drive economic growth, hence, education is a way to heal past divisions, establish a fairer society, improve people’s quality of life and create a more prosperous nation.
“By this concept, individuals and groups are empowered to expand their abilities to fully participate more in the developmental process of their organizations, hence, in a global economy, the ability to compete depends on building a skilled, competent and confident workforce.
“Therefore, as technology evolves, organizations and individuals are required to obtain, improve, and retain the skills, knowledge, tools, equipment and other resources needed to do their jobs proficiently. A critical goal of human capacity development is that of maximizing people’s potential to contribute to development by participating fully and actively in all its activities.”
He disclosed that Ukraine was host to over 12,000 Nigerians studying in different universities, thus urging students to take advantage of the affordability of the education in Ukraine to acquire skills and knowledge that would make them relevant.
He added: “In our quest to offer affordable, sustainable and quality education for Nigerian students and workers, which include tertiary education, vocational skills training and entrepreneurship development programmes that will ensure rapid economic growth, including professional courses that help to improve work efficiency, our organization developed a working relationship with the Lviv University of Business and Law, Ukraine, under an existing collaboration with our common partner institution, the V.N Karazin Kharkiv National University.”
“Amongst numerous other engagements of our skills centre includes; the training of the youths of Ogun state in entrepreneurship development circle. We equally developed a strong partnership with the Federal Polytechnic Nekede, Imo state, as both parties came together to establish the FEDPOLYNEK/FTAISA Skills and Project Centre.”
Meanwhile, some of the awardees appreciated the University for the recognition, and promised to be good ambassadors of the school and encourage more students to pursue their academic dream there.