The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in collaboration with MIDAS IT of India has presented engineering training software package valued at $17.4million to 15 Nigerian Universities.
The President NSE, Engr Margaret Oguntala, speaking on the occasion said the gesture presented a valuable opportunity to accelerate meaningful action in advancing engineering education and professional development in Nigeria.
She called for renewed commitment to excellence, mentorship and national development.
She emphasised that the future of the engineering profession lay in the hands of the young ones.
“It is our collective duty to guide, support and inspire them to rise to their full potential. Through structured mentorship and active knowledge-sharing, we can equip the next generation to lead the engineering profession with vision, competence and excellence,” she said.
Mrs Oguntala reaffirmed that the Nigerian Society of Engineers remained fully committed to the cause which she described as a step towards promoting academic excellence, particularly among undergraduate students.
“As the world continues to embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it has become increasingly critical for us as a country, to create deliberate pathways for our young innovators to transition from classroom concepts to real-world applications.
“I therefore urge the benefiting universities in this programme to intensify their efforts in closing the gap between academia and industry. By doing so, we will ensure that our engineering graduates are well-prepared to function effectively and confidently in the professional space from the moment they leave the university,”
The NSE President while thanking MIDAS IT of India for the generous donation, added that the Republic of India, through the corporation, has demonstrated itself to be a true friend of Nigeria by “supporting our national development aspirations through the provision of these world-class information technology tools,”
“This partnership is indeed valuable as we continue to strive towards elevating the capabilities of our young students ahead of their graduation and integration into the professional world,” she added.
She further called on the federal government of Nigeria to further strengthen its cooperation with the government of India.
She said,“through sustained collaboration, we can deepen our efforts in technology transfer, capacity building and infrastructure development. It is vital that both countries continue to work together towards shared objectives that will bring mutual benefit and promote the advancement of engineering, innovation and service delivery in our societies,”.
In his remarks, the Chairman, NSE, Policy Think Tank Committee, Prof. Michael Faborode said the initiative aimed to produce graduates who will end the era of building collapses and road failures in the country.
The Managing Director, Africa and UAE region, MIDAS It Co, Mr. Naga Ravi Kiran Anne, said research had proved that humans were naturally curious hence, for students or children, there was the need to give them the right tools.
He said once the right tools are given, they themselves will try to learn.
“So, that is where this mission in MIDAS IT started,”
He said the firm planned to reach the students of different universities with the tools to enhance their learning thereby bridging the gap between learning and industrial practice.
“Maybe this is the first step today, we are talking about civil engineering software donation. Maybe in the next stage we may get into mechanical engineering as well, we can donate the mechanical software. So, in this building and structural engineering, the flagship product is MIDAS GenX which is mainly for design of buildings and bridge and civil Engineering…
Earlier in his welcome remarks, the Vice President, Professional Development, NSE, Prof. Aluyah Dauda Okodugha, said the initiative aimed to ensure that Nigerian Engineers could compete favourably with their peers anywhere in the world.
“We have continually encouraged government, industry and development partners to focus their attention and take appropriate action in providing modern tools and facilities that enhance engineering education and practice,”.
Speaking on behalf of the benefiting institutions, the Vice Chancellor Confluence University, Prof Abdulrahman Salawu, thanked the firm and the NSE council for the donation.
He pledged to develop indigenous softwares that would address local challenges.
He said “Thank you for this gesture, I want to promise you that in the next few years ,we are not going to take softwares from you, we are going to develop our own software ,that is a promise because we are doing reverse engineering , we’ll learn and develop ours but thank you for this gesture,”
LEADERSHIP reports that some of the benefiting institutions are the University of Benin, University of Lagos, Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University (JUSTUM), University of Abuja and University of Maiduguri, among others.
