The Rector, Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech), Engr Obafemi Omokungbe, has disclosed that the management of the school will continue to promote, support and encourage the culture of research.
Omokungbe made this statement at the 2020 international conference, physical and virtual, organised by Yabatech chapter of Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP) titled, “COVID-19 Pandemic: An enabled TVET towards Sustainable Survival and Recovery of Global Economies”.
He welcomed all the participants from across the country and other parts of the world, especially the lead paper presenters, Dr S.A.O. Adegoke, Rector, Osun State College of Technology, and Mr S.A. Afolami, Lagos regional manager, Bank of Industry.
He stressed that their participation will create the opportunity for both the academia and industry to share experiences and learn from each other.
The rector said that a conference of that nature is a valuable platform for participants to network, share information, ideas, and new research findings for the recovery of global economies and sustainable development particularly with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It is important to understand that a Technical and Vocation Education and Training (TVET) institution like ours has a role to play in post-COVID-19 economy recovery and achieving sustainable development. “To achieve this, we must empower our institutions through capital and human resources development to fulfil their mandates. It is the responsibility of all Management, Staff Unions, Public and Private Organizations to rise to the occasion.” he said.
Omokungbe noted that even though, the college, like many other institutions, is faced with challenges of funding, Yabatech will continue to support her staff through development and training programmes, adding that good numbers of staff with management support were able to access Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund) Research grant, Conferences and Training sponsorship.
According to him, “Since the inception of this administration, our major pre-occupation has been upgrading of our facilities, such as classrooms, laboratories, studios, workshops, and staff offices to create enabling environment for learning, teaching and research.”
