With ‘The Future is Now’ as theme, the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) Alumni Association recently converged on Lagos for its yearly convention.
Held at the Welcome Hotels, Airport Road, Ikeja, Lagos, the convention featured a series of engagements aimed at strengthening alumni networks, fostering mentorship, and unlocking opportunities for national and global impact.
It also served as a platform for members to brainstorm on strategies for integrating the emerging Generation Z into the association and to sensitise members on important personal and financial planning.
Speaking with journalists, the Global President of the UNIZIK Alumni Association, Professor Ikechukwu Umeh, highlighted the convention’s focus, particularly, addressing the association’s future growth and impact.
“Our university has graduated thousands, if not millions of alumni,” Prof. Umeh said. “And at this time, we are looking at the new generation. What’s up for them—I mean the Gen Zs.”
He noted the diverse mix of generations present, stating, “we have a mixture of the Gen X, Y and Z. So, how do we harness ourselves as members of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Alumni association so that we can make a great impact in our alma mater?”
Explaining reason for the theme, he said it was chosen to focus on harnessing emerging trends for a better university. He added the convention would help the association “live up to what it was meant to be,” by brainstorming how to integrate incoming members, current students, and all affiliates to ensure they become successful alumni and contribute to the institution’s greatness.
In addition to focusing on the future of the university, Umeh pointed out the association’s role in promoting Nigerian culture for national development.
“If you look at our members gathered here, nobody is wearing a foreign attire. We are all Nigerians, and we are proudly Nigeria,” he stated, noting that the association is proud of its cultural heritage, which is promoted even through their dress and convention activities.
Also echoing the need for theme, Chairman of the Lagos branch of the Association, Mr. Kenneth Okoli, emphasised the convention’s primary focus on personal readiness and planning.
Okoli stated that the international convention aimed to sensitize the over two thousand members on “the need to plan their lives in case of any eventuality.”
“Globally, most countries’ economies are not fantastic. So we need to plan whatever we are doing to secure our future,” he explained.
Okoli concluded, “We expect that people will have a lot of reasons to stop blaming anybody. Plan your life, family, and resources the way it should be. If you don’t plan, you already plan to fail.”
Founded in 1991, Nnamdi Azikiwe University has, for over three decades, provided qualitative and research-oriented education to Nigerians and all those who have entered its domain in search of knowledge. The University has built a legacy of excellence and has been instrumental in the production of top-range graduates and academia who have had tremendous impact, directly or indirectly, on growth and development in Nigeria.
