In consonance with its rising status as the fastest growing Institution of Higher Learning in Nigeria, the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) today, 11 December, 2023 held its maiden Public Lecture to educate the public on the significance of Information Communication Technology to the evolving corporate world. The Lecture, which drew dignitaries and professionals from all walks of life focused on “Leveraging Technology Capacity to Achieve the Renewed Hope Agenda”. It would be recalled that the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had called on Nigerians to leverage on the opportunities created by information technology to create job opportunities for talented indigenes.
The Commandant of the Institute, Air Vice Marshal Sani Labaran Rabe, expressed delight at the historic event and described it as a landmark in the growth of the School. He described the Maiden Public Lecture as “a reflection of the faith the current leadership of the Nigerian Air Force, headed by Air Marshal HB Abubakar, has in the ability of fellow countrymen to achieve great heights if the enabling environment is provided.”
According to AVM Rabe, it mirrors the “confidence of the 4 regulators of the Institute, namely National Universities Commission, National Board for Technical Education, Nigerian Air Force and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, in the ability of the President and Commander-in-Chief, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to build local capacity in different fields of human endeavor using information communication technology”. He stated that AFIT, as an Institute of Technology, had “the capacity and competence to contribute meaningfully to the actualization of the President’s Vision, adding that, the lecture was the first in a series of activities planned by the Institute to key into the Vision.
He disclosed that “AFIT paved the way for the development of unarmed drones in Nigeria with the successful completion of the “AMEBO” UAV project” and recalled that the Institute developed an oxygen support-mechanism to aid patients during the COVID 19 era. In addition, the institute designed a Digital ID to detect fake ID with multiple functions, created a Chat AFIT Application while a software named AFIT 360 was also designed. Furthermore, AFIT’s students of Cyber Security and of the Computer Science Departments, emerged triumphant at the IT Research, Innovation, and entrepreneurship Hackathon hosted at Baze University, Abuja. He therefore reiterated that “AFIT’s continuous success at prestigious competitions is a testament to the institution’s unwavering commitment to fostering creativity, innovation and problem-solving skills among its students”.
The Guest Lecturer and President of Digital Bridge Institute, Engineer Professor Mohammed Ajiya, stated that “Technology has been the main driver of global transformation” and it propels the Industrial revolutions. According to him, “disruptive technology sweeps away the systems or habits it replaces because it has attributes that are recognizably superior”. He therefore enjoined Nigeria and other developing nations to leverage on the prevailing technology to pilot the development of their citizens.
Professor Ajiya deduced that the main reason the current administration in Nigeria developed a proactive blueprint tagged “The Renewed Hope Agenda” was to propel Nigeria “to advance its national desire of simplifying governance, deployment of seamless digital solution in all spheres of our national life and create a beneficial environment where entrepreneurship, innovation, business, and wealth creation can thrive”.
The Guest Lecturer acknowledged that most technological developments have come from the military. He therefore called on the Federal government to empower specialized institutions like AFIT to play a critical role as drivers of research, innovation, business, entrepreneurship, and technology. An admixture of professionals attended the maiden Public Lecture. They included former Commandants, Senators, Chief Executive Officers, Heads of Institutions and Government parastatals, representatives of corporate entities and communication firms, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Executive Secretaries of NUC, NBTE, PTDF, TETFund, representative of the Emir of Zazzau, Vice Chancellors, Provosts, Rectors, Professors, NAFOWA Chairperson Kaduna Chapter and top ranking military officers.
Bassey Okon PhD
Wing CommanderAFIT Director of Public Relations