BY RITA OYIBOKA
THE Vice Chancellor , University of Delta, Agbor (UNIDEL), Professor Stella Chiemeke has called for a stronger partnership between government, industry, and academia to effectively tackle Nigeria’s societal and national challenges.
She made the call, yesterday, during an exclusive interview with The Pointer in her office.
According to her, “Knowledge is power. In the universities, a lot of research is going on. In the Faculty of Engineering, for example, we have state-of-the-art equipment, and both faculty members and students are involved in various kinds of research,” she noted.
Professor Chiemeke, however, lamented the weak relationship between the university (gown) and the industries (town).
“The real issue, however, is the town and gown relationship. Let’s start with the industries: how many of them still genuinely believe in the research being carried out in our universities?
“Until we bring together what is often called the triple helix, government, academia, and industry, to work in partnership, we won’t be able to solve societal and national problems effectively,” she said.
The Vice Chancellor criticized the industries for often shutting their doors to collaboration, despite initial promises.
“We must believe in ourselves. The industries, for instance, often keep their doors closed. Many times, you invite them over, have discussions, and show them what you have developed; they will promise to collaborate, but at the end of the day, everyone goes back to working in silence and isolation. Until we come together and truly believe in our capacity to work as partners, we won’t achieve meaningful progress,” she stressed.
Professor Chiemeke also acknowledged the partial success of the Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES), which places students in industries as part of their training.
“Thankfully, within the university system, there is at least a level where students are sent on SIWES. Some industries do open their doors, and at the end of the day, they even report that our students perform well. But some industries refuse; they are only interested in producing and pushing their goods into the market, without engaging with academia,” she observed.
She further emphasised that only a genuine, sustained collaboration among government, academia, and industry would drive the nation forward.
“This relationship between the three sectors, government, academia, and industry, is critical if we truly want progress,” she said.
