….Charges Varsities On Internal Strategies To Minimize Spread, Exposure 

The National Universities Commission, NUC,  says the Nigeria University System is currently carrying out robust research on how to tackle and mitigate the effect of COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

The Executive Secretary, NUC, Professor Abubakar Rasheed represented by the Deputy Executive Secretary Academics Dr Suleiman Ramon-Yusuf, made the disclosure on Tuesday in Abuja while briefing the press on the ongoing contributions of Nigerian Universities to the national response to COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him “the Federal Government is making very serious efforts and at the forefront of coordinated efforts to reduce the spread and mitigate the untoward effects of COVID-19 pandemic, various universities within the Nigeria univeristy system have been making contributions through research and innovations endeavours to the nations robust response to the devasting pandemic”. 

He said efforts of institutions such as Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Airforce Institute of  Technology Kaduna and Bayero University Kano in the area of  Engineering have developed mechanical and automatic ventilators aimed at helping to mitigate the ravaging  COVID -19.

He noted that “in the area of Genomic research,  the Africa Centers of Excellence (ACE)  particularly the centre for the Genomics of Infectious Diseases at the Redeemer’s University Ede, was collaborating with the University of Cambridge for the development of vaccines.

He further said that the ACEs in  Ahmadu Bello University  Zaria, Bayero University Kano, University of Lagos, Benin, Port Harcourt and the University of Jos which served as national testing and screening centres have now gone to show that world-class research and development was possible in Nigeria.

He stressed that if research activities are well funded in the country’s university system it could be effective for national development, while also emphasising the need to motivate researchers including students.

speaking further on the area of herbal remedies, Professor Rasheed said the directive of President Buhari on herbal and natural products development stemmed from the great and enviable leadership of the Madagascar president, Andry Rajoelina.

“We can say that as of the 27 of June 2020 not less than 32 universities across our university system are involved in different stages of research endeavours that are aimed at galvanising Nigerian research innovation resources towards the development of possible vaccine and of course non-vaccine related solutions to the ravaging pandemic”. He said.

on the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Professor Rasheed clarified that “the tripartite mandate of the universities is teaching, research and community engagement whereas there are issues related to an industrial dispute which has caused ASUU to be on strike “I can assure you that as patriotic Nigerians everyone including members of ASUU have been involved in putting all hands on deck to ensure that we are able to deal with COVID-19 in the perspective of mitigating the effect and limiting the spread”.He said he is not able to put a time frame to when the issues involving ASUU/FG will be resolved but assured that efforts are ongoing to find a solution to the current problem as it were.

He reminded everyone that “this is very unusual times you would agree with me that but for the pandemic, it is not usually the case that when there is an industrial action it affects universities that do not have active members of ASUU such as the private universities, so for the avoidance of doubt it is important to clarify that universities just like other educational institutions are closed right now on account of the health concern of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic. As an organization, we have already begun to deal with the universities in terms of what kind of preparations should we put in place before the issue of commencement”. 

“you are aware that at the secondary school level, some level of activities has just begun. So for us in the university system, we have sent out a template to vice-chancellors of all universities requesting them to suggest to us what kinds of protocols and strategies they are putting in place in their various institutions, taking into account their local peculiarities that will give some sense of confidence to parents and other stakeholders that students can return to the universities without undue exposure to the COVID 19 pandemic”. 

“so until we harvest the input from the universities, we are unable to sit in Abuja to establish the level of preparedness of each and every university but what is going on right now is that we are collating some of the responses that have already started coming in and at the end of the day the picture will emerge about the extent to which our universities are prepared to open for academic activities without undue compromise of the health, safety and security of our students; and of course once that is done, those that are not on strike will have no reason not to go to work”. he said