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From Felix Ikem, Nsukka
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Prof Charles Igwe, has commended the Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) for promoting research and collaborations among African universities.
Prof Igwe said this while speaking at a dinner organized for selected alumni of the University of Nigeria and the Michigan State University in Abuja, where he thanked the AAP for bringing African universities together to solve problems peculiar to the continent.
The VC said that the AAP was birthed at a time African universities desperately needed such collaborations to help bridge the gap on impactful research on the continent
“It is worthy of note that the admission of the UNN into the AAP consortium has further exposed us to the immeasurable benefits of partnering with other African universities.
“The partnership has helped us to address a number of problems peculiar to our continent,” he said.
Igwe said that the AAP consortium has created an opportunity for staff of the University of Nigeria to participate in international collaborative research projects, which have enhanced the institution’s global viability and ranking.
“I am pleased to acknowledge that some staff of the UNN has benefited from AAP’s Partnership for Innovation Research in Africa (PIRA) grants,” Igwe said, adding that his staff have also benefitted from the Transforming Institution Strategic Grants and the African Future Research Leadership Grants.
He explained that the alumni dinner, a programme in AAP’s 2nd Annual General Meeting, was organized to deepen the bond of friendship between alumni of the MSU and the UNN.
He thanked Michigan State University for leading the formation of the AAP and promised the commitment of the University of Nigeria to promote the ideals of the AAP in Nigeria.
Prof Steve Hanson, the associate provost and dean of International Studies and Programmes of Michigan University explained that the purpose of AAP was to build the next generation of African researchers that would champion the development and promote leadership in their communities.
He said that the AAP has provided a collaborative and cross-disciplinary platform for researchers to address global challenges in a sustainable way through co-creation of ideas.
The AAP is a consortium of 12 African Institutions and the Michigan State University (MSU). The University of Nigeria is the only Nigerian institution in the consortium.
