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Our Members Are Ready to Help Govt Succeed – Unilag Alumni
As part of its contribution to national development, the University of Lagos (Unilag) Alumni Association has offered to make available to the Federal Government the abundant skills and talents in its various sectoral Alumni groups.
The Olor’ogun Dr Sonny Kuku OFR, FAS; National President of the Unilag Alumni and co-founder of Eko Hospital, who made the offer during a courtesy visit by members of the National Executive Committee of the Association to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Aso Villa in Abuja yesterday, said the Federal Government can draw from the Association’s various sectoral groups as resources and think-tanks.
Welcoming the Alumni to the Villa, Vice President Osinbajo said the task of nation building is a demanding one and the Federal Government needs all the help it can get from every Nigerian.
He assured members of the Association that he would continue to do his best in the discharge of his duties as Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and make the University and its Alumni association proud.
In his speech to the Vice President who is also an alumnus of the widely acclaimed university of first choice, Dr. Kuku noted that the Association is keen to support the Federal Government in Nigeria’s trying times and to provide its perspective on the way forward for the nation and its economy as well as the university system. He gave the
Alumni’s perspectives on social development especially relating to human capital development, security and the provision of quality social services.
He emphasized the challenges of infrastructure improvement, diversifying the economy through agriculture and manufacturing, resolving foreign exchange issues and providing a more business-friendly environment.
He also presented the Alumni’s perspectives on improving the university system in terms of funding and autonomy.
He urged the government to seek ways of engaging the youth, particularly on Information and Communication Technology (ICT), as a way of ensuring that the contribution of this vital segment of the population is efficiently exploited.
He added that the government needs to accelerate and sustain its interventions in power and transport sectors.
Highlighting the need for the government to make agriculture a top priority, Dr. Kuku said the government should focus on policies and programmes that would lead to significant improvements in agricultural yields and products quality. “There must be proper administration, void of corruption and misappropriation of funds. It is time for a change. It is time for a revolution.”
Declaring that doing business in Nigeria is still very tough in spite of the government’s best efforts, the Unilag Alumni Association’s president said there is a need for clarity and consistency in policies as well as alignment between monetary and fiscal regimes in order to build confidence and grow FDI. “To this extent, the government should streamline the work of the ministries for co-ordination and effectiveness.”
The Association recommended a 3-point solution to the perennial problem of funding in the nation’s university system. It wants the Federal Government to pay the universities per student instead of the current arrangement where subventions are doled out.
Also, the Association wants our universities to place less emphasis on the tedious task of driving internally generated revenue because this distracts them from offering resourceful solutions to the nation’s challenges by way of inventions and breakthrough research, among others.
“Lastly, the students must be encouraged to pay reasonable fees and all levels of government (local, state and federal) give scholarships and student loans”, just as individuals, communities and well-meaning organizations should also come to the party, he said.
Giving the Association’s perspective on university autonomy, Dr. Kuku said “We believe that universities should become autonomous and governed independently, rather than through the Federal Ministry of Education, which could remain a regulator… We also believe that the structure of appointments to university councils should be reviewed.”
The association expressed delight with the Library Funding support by the Federal Government to the University of Lagos recently. It sought further intervention in addressing housing deficiency in the system, land reclamation and structural changes in financial autonomy to cut red tape and enable the university to fast track development.
Other members in the Alumni Association’s delegation to the Villa included Otunba SeniAdetu, 1st Vice President, Deaconess Arit Ibanga, 2nd Vice President and Professor Olayide Abass, the immediate Past President of the Association.
Accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) adoption could increase Africa’s GDP by up to 4% over the next decade, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a report released on Tuesday, titled Africa Can Grow Faster With AI—If It Moves Now, economists from the IMF’s Africa Department say current levels of AI adoption and utilisation are expected to contribute just 0.2% to the region’s GDP over the next 10 years.
However, the report says stronger adoption, supported by the right infrastructure and policies, could raise the economic impact to about 4% by extending AI beyond today’s digitally connected firms.
Martin Schindler and other IMF economists say: “AI adoption in sub-Saharan Africa currently lags well behind every other region. If richer economies race ahead while African firms and governments lag, the productivity gap between the region and the rest of the world will only widen.”
Early signs of AI adoption are emerging across Africa, with countries including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Egypt and Nigeria developing AI strategies.
Telecommunications operators, including Vodacom, Econet, Africell and MTN, are also integrating AI into their operations and networks.
Other examples include chatbots supporting teaching and learning in Nigeria and the South African Revenue Service’s use of data analytics for targeted tax audits.
However, the IMF says AI adoption must extend beyond these early use cases to deliver meaningful economic benefits.
“For the region, AI’s main promise is not about replacing office workers, but boosting productivity across the economy—helping informal firms manage inventory, enabling farmers to increase yields, and supporting mid-sized firms to transition to formality and export readiness,” the report reads.
The IMF is urging governments to prioritise investment in reliable electricity, affordable broadband, data infrastructure and digital skills to support wider AI adoption.
Many African countries, including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, continue to face electricity shortages, while broadband services remain costly and coverage is uneven.
The Fund believes stronger investment in power, connectivity, regional data infrastructure and digital skills would help unlock AI’s economic potential.
National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the nationwide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system to strengthen legal identity management and improve demographic data.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lokoja on Tuesday, Mr Afolabi Yori, federal commissioner representing Kogi, said the initiative became operational nationwide on July 1, through the VitalReg platform.
Yori described the development as a landmark in Nigeria’s civil registration system, noting that it would modernise birth and death registration through a technology-driven platform that meets international standards.
He said the digital platform would improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was accurately documented and securely stored.
According to him, civil registration is more than an administrative process, as it provides reliable statistics that support public policy formulation, resource allocation and national development planning.
“Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.
“Birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent,” he said.
The commissioner said that the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was working to expand the number to about 8,000.
He added that the commission was strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to improve the capacity of registration personnel and ensure prompt documentation of vital events through the VitalReg platform.
Yori said the platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, and reduce paperwork, waiting time and unnecessary travel.
He disclosed that the platform was being operated under a Public-Private Partnership with Barnks-forte Technologies Ltd. as the commission’s technical partner to ensure system availability, cybersecurity and continuous technological improvement.
He called on parents, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to support the initiative by encouraging the prompt registration of births and deaths.
Earlier, Samuel Omonakpeme, director in Kogi, NPC State, described the commencement of the digital registration system as another milestone in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.
Omonakpeme stated that the initiative aligns with the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16.9, which seeks to provide legal identity for all.
He appreciated the Federal Government, the leadership of the commission, UNICEF and other development partners for supporting the implementation of the initiative.
The state director also urged parents, guardians, health institutions, community leaders, religious organisations and the media to mobilise public support for the timely registration of all births and deaths.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that ICT personnel of the commission, led by Ehimoni Kolawole, conducted a live demonstration of the digital birth registration process using the VitalReg platform.
The demonstration showed that the registration process captures the biodata of both parents, while at least one parent must possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN) to complete the registration of a newborn.
Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) has alerted its customers to a fraudulent message circulating on social media, falsely claiming that electricity consumers can receive an additional 20 per cent bonus units when recharging their prepaid meters through unofficial channels.
In a statement issued by the company’s management on Monday, YEDC described the claim as false and urged customers to disregard the misleading information, stressing that it did not originate from the company.
According to the statement, YEDC does not offer bonus electricity units through individuals, agents, personal bank accounts, phone numbers, or social media contacts.
The company advised customers to purchase electricity tokens only through approved cashless payment platforms, including the YEDC Pay App, OPay, Interswitch, and other authorised vending channels, or to visit the nearest YEDC office for assistance.
YEDC also cautioned customers against sharing their meter details or personal information, or making payments to unauthorised persons claiming to represent the company.
The company further urged customers to rely exclusively on information disseminated through its official communication channels to avoid falling victim to fraud.
The management thanked customers for their continued cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to serving them.
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