This is a news about the Afrihub ICT parks. What amazed me is that I thought that this monster cybercafe set up inside an university was just one of a kind project. Wrong! They are going to open 3 more of these! What about changing the face of Nigeria
Roger

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TECHNOLOGY NUC boss pleads for more ICT centres in universities

Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof. Peter Okebukola has called on public spirited individuals and corporate persons to extend the establishment of IT platforms to more tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Prof. Okebukola spoke at the commissioning of the Afrihub ICT park at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.

Addressing an audience of academics, which included the Hon. Minister of Education, Dr. Chinwe Obaji, the NUC Executive Secretary, pointed out that tertiary institutions in Nigeria were in dire need of IT infrastructure which would aid in the production of globally competitive graduates by Nigerian universities.

The Executive Secretary praised the management of Afrihub for establishing its third ICT Park in tertiary institutions, immediately after the centers at UNN, Nsukka and Enugu campuses. Prof. Okebukola described the Afrihub intervention as a boost to the vision of the NUC to link the entire university system in Nigeria to the outside world through the web.

Prof. Okebukola said that he was not surprised that Zinox Computers was involved in the Afrihub project. The Exec. Sec. expressed satisfaction that all the systems at all the Afrihub ICT parks were manufactured by Zinox Computers. He noted that the confidence that Afrihub reposed on Zinox Computer was an endorsement of the computers’ high quality and thumbs-up for local technology.

Prof. Okebukola commended the public spiritedness of Zinox Computers and its chairman, Chief Leo Stan Ekeh, in the donation of Computer Centers to some universities and polytechnics. He urged Afrihub, Zinox and other public spirited persons to extend the establishment of these essential IT platforms to more tertiary institutions in the country.

Earlier, in his address at the commissioning the Vice President of Afrihub, Prof. Manny Aniebonam informed that Afrihub would open another ICT Park in the South West, within the next quarter, this would be quickly followed by two more, one in the South-South and another in the North- East. He explained that Afrihub plans to have an ICT Park in every university in Nigeria.

During a tour of the facility, Prof. Aniebonam, who also doubles as the President of the Nigerian IT Professionals in America, explained that the Afrihub ICT Parks are modeled after the best ICT Parks in the world. He presented more than 200 Pentium 4 computers deployed in the 620 sq. meters large cybercafé with a VIP cyber lounge, 3 fully equipped classrooms, a lecture hall, student-counseling facility, and an ICT help center. Among other facilities presented were an Afrifresh Snack Shop, a Computer Shop, C-Band VSAT Connection and a 250KVA back-up generator. Prof. Manny Aniebonam opined that with these facilities professionally manned by the Afrihub staff that the Nnamdi Azikiwe University has become a university-on-the-net instead of a university-in-the-bush.

In his contribution at the commissioning the chairman of Zinox Computers, Chief Leo Stan Ekeh, explained that the concept of Afrihub was consistent to his assertions that an IT enabled environment would spur education in Nigeria to achieve the developmental aspirations of this country. Chief Ekeh urged the faculty staff to acquire IT competencies as a matter of urgency since they could not teach what they did not understand. He was optimistic that in the next three or four years the Nnamdi Azikiwe University would be producing world-class graduates who can hold on to their own anywhere in the world.

In her concluding remarks the Minister of Education, Mrs. Chinwe Obaji congratulated the Nnamdi Azikiwe University for exploring the potentials of the Public Private Partnership, reiterating that Government alone cannot fund education. The Hon. Minister urged other tertiary institutions to emulate the example of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University and achieve more creative ways of funding education.