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Time Lists UNIPORT VC Among Top 100 African Change Makers …Presents Medal Of Honour, Awards
The Vice Chancellor, University of Port Harcourt, Prof Owunari Georgewill, has been honoured by Time Africa Magazine, as the Change Maker of the Year 2022.
Time Africa is an International Biweekly Magazine with a culture of excellence with correspondents across the nations of Africa.
A statement by the university’s Public Relations Officer,Dr Sam Kpenu, in Port Harcourt,said the presentation of the awards to the VC was done, last Monday, at the Vice Chancellors Office, University of Port Harcourt by the Chairman of Time Africa Board, Rory Knight based in Washington, DC, United States of America.
The statement quotedKnight as saying that Georgewill was honoured because of the highest level of excellence and achievement in his field, his impacts which have a lasting legacy in Nigeria, the continent and around the world.
The statement said the board chairman, who was represented by the Managing Director andEditor-In-Chief of the magazine, Chidi-Peters Okorie said, “African 100 Award/Medal of Honour is bestowed on Professor Owunari Georgewill based on three criteria: outstanding research, unusually effective teaching, and distinguished professorial service.
“Today, he is given this medal of honour and listed among the African 100 due to his high impact performance, and I hope that this honour shall bring to Professor Georgewill a feeling of accomplishment and encourage him to move forward with increased confidence and strength,” he said.
Knight said the University of Port Harcourt has become Africa’s education game-changer, shifting from teacher-centric education to student-centric education, noting that Geogewill, upon assumption of office, has made history through his fearless, strong, and determined programmes that have set transformational agenda for a competitive University of Port Harcourt.
He described Georgewill as a reformer who has introduced several reform programmes that have brought the university’s management closer to staff, students, and stakeholders through “This Week In Retrospect” and “Welcome To A New Week”.
Knight said, “under Georgewill’s leadership, the university has made tremendous progress in areas of academic, international collaborations with universities in Africa and Europe as well as Canada and the US, and has attracted government and international organisations in the infrastructure uplifting of the university”.
The international magazine also noted that from available records, the university was currently a construction ground for faculty buildings, hostel accommodation buildings, professorial office buildings, staff office buildings, classrooms, lecture theatres, lecture auditoriums, solar power for electricity supply, academic excellence with the participation of staff and students in local and international conferences, workshops, seminars, and post-graduate training, amongst others, and expressed the hope that these awards; the medal of honour and African 100 would spur him to greater heights by not relenting on his oars.
Responding, Prof Georgewill Owunari expressed appreciation to Time Africa Magazine for the recognition, and dedicated the award to all men and women of goodwill striving for excellence in their various fields of endeavour and to God Almighty.
He said the journey so far has been interesting, and revealed that he would use every opportunity at his disposal to present the university to the national and international levels.
He described himself as a servant who works along with other members of staff (teaching and non-teaching) and students to perform at optimal level to develop the university.
He told his audience, “Since my assumption of office on July 13, 2021, justice and fair play have been my watchword. I provide equal opportunity for all, irrespective of tribe, religion, or gender. I give high consideration to gender parity in all my appointments, and maintain the rule of law in all my actions by playing by the extant rules of the university”.
He assured the organisation that he would not be scared to delve into uncharted waters, saying that that has been the conveyor belt that has enabled him to continue to thrive in leaps and bounds; creating an engaging environment to nurture academic growth and encourage a culture of research and development, teaching and learning as well as community service.
By: Amadi Akujobi
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.