By Sariba Manneh
Eleven senior academics from Nigeria have been deployed to the University of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology (USET) in The Gambia for a two-year voluntary service. This initiative is part of the Nigerian Government’s Technical Aid Corp (NTAC) program, which aims to support African and Caribbean countries by providing professionals to meet their manpower needs.
The distinguished group, which includes professors, PhD holders, and other doctorates in engineering, features one female academic. Their deployment follows a request from the Gambian Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (MoHERST).
Mrs. Olayinka Temidayo Balogun, Acting Nigeria High Commissioner to Banjul, highlighted the significance of this particular cohort.
“This set is special because they are here to assist the new university in The Gambia in building indigenous engineers. Nigeria has been involved in technical aid since 1987, aiming to build the capacity of friendly African and Caribbean countries,” she said. “We have the NTAC in other countries in Africa and even in the Caribbean.”
The Acting High Commissioner urged the volunteers to serve not only as engineers, but also as ambassadors for Nigeria. Samuel Owusu Ofori, Vice Chancellor of USET, echoed this sentiment, encouraging the lecturers to excel in their duties.
In his vote of thanks, Prof. Yusuf Abdul fatch, one of the lecturers, affirmed their commitment to fulfilling their mission at USET. The Permanent Secretary of MoHERST, Dr. YusuphaTouray, expressed profound gratitude to the Nigerian Government for their invaluable contributions and time.
