From Angela Mbaocha, Abakaliki
The Vice Chancellor of Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo (AE-FUNAI), Prof. Sunday Elom, on Monday disclosed that the institution has secured about N3.4 billion research grants this year.
Prof. Elom, noted that 10 academic staff from the various faculties in the university obtained the research grants locally and internationally.
He made the disclosure during his maiden press briefing to mark the commencement of the 6th convocation ceremony of the institution.
Prof. Elom, who is the 3rd Vice Chancellor of the University, hinted that during the convocation ceremony which will be held on December 14, AE-FUNAI will be turning out 900 graduands in 10 faculties.
Among the 900 graduands, 20 will come out with First Class, Second Class Upper, 306, Second Class Lower 494, Third Class, 79, Pass, 1
He stated his achievements within 10 months in the office, to include, constitution of a university-wide security committee comprising staff, students, host community representatives and members of security agencies.
Accreditation of six programmes by the National Universities Commission (NUC) in April this year. Pre-Clinical Accreditation of MBBS programme by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, which has led to the commencement of clinical training for their pioneer medical students in October this year.
He said : “According to a leading global ranking body based in Turkey, AD Scientific Index, our University ranked 32 out of 167 universities in Nigeria on the quality of scientists in 2021. The July 2021 edition of Webometric World University ranking, AE-FUNAI ranked 50 out of 279 tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Also in the African Continent, AE-FUNAI was ranked 279 out of 1,952 Institutions. Globally AE-FUNAI ranked 6,006 out of 11,987 institutions in 2021.
“We have also sustained the culture of keeping to the academic calendar which led to the graduation and mobilization of our students for NYSC batch B programme for July/August, 2021. In fact, AE-FUNAI was the only public university in Nigeria that mobilized students for NYSC in the batch B 2019/2020 academic session.”
The VC, disclosed that this year’s convocation lecture, tittled “Cost sharing in Funding University Education in Nigeria” would be delivered by Emeritus Professor Onyechi Obidoa while the event will be chaired by Professor Charles Chike Onochie, former Vice-Chancellor, Renaissance University, Ugbawka, Enugu State.
Stating: “also, as part of the programme of activities for the 6th convocation ceremony, on 9th December, 2021, 68 pioneer graduating students of our Faculty of Education will be inducted into the teaching profession by the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria”.
