Founder and Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD), Chief Afe Babalola, SAN, declared, yesterday, that the only way Africa could regain the ground lost to other continents and claim its rightful place in the global affairs, is through quality education.

The legal icon noted that civilisation did not start from Europe or America, but in Africa, wondering how the continent lost its ground and became underdeveloped, insisting that neither Europe nor America was superior to Africa.

Babalola stated this at a public lecture organised in honour of the visiting delegation from the Durban University of Technology (DUT) in South Africa, which took place at the ABUAD campus, Ado Ekiti.

“The title of the lecture today is the future African should claim in the global affairs. I am a student of history. The first civilisation was not in Europe, Australia or Britain or America, it was in Africa. Talk about science. The first knowledge about mathematics, about the world was not in Europe. We lost our ground, why? I don’t know.

“When I was young, I used to think that Europe was superior to Africa. But I have changed my mind having gone through education. I still believe we can achieve our rightful place in the world through education. That is why working together with Durban University will make it possible to achieve that goal,” he said.

The Executive Dean of the Faculty of Management Sciences at the Durban University of Technology (DUT), South Africa, and the Guest Lecturer, Prof. Fulufhelo Netswera, said Africa should take responsibility for its underdevelopment.

He said in his lecture titled “The Future Africa Should Claim in Global Affairs’, that Africa should take charge of its development because the continent is blessed with abundant natural resources more than any continent.

“Africa, as some of you may know, has got the biggest arable land on the planet. However, currently Africa is importing food from small countries like Ukraine and I think that must stop. Africa has got the richest minerals, with our big rivers like in Congo and the Nile River; we should be able to generate enough electricity to power the whole of Africa, including solar energy because we have abundant radiation.

“So there is so much that Africa can give, not only to itself but to the rest of the world. Currently, we are not doing that. The blame for the underdevelopment should squarely lie in Africa. We, Africans, should take charge of our own development. We should, however, not turn a blind eye to the multinational corporation that is currently looting the continent. They will go to any length to make sure that those standing on their way get eliminated.”

In her welcome remarks, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Smeranda Olarinde, said the partnership between ABUAD and DUT was a testament to the power of academic diplomacy in driving sustainable development.

“It is noteworthy that this initiative sponsored 23 ABUAD staff members to begin postgraduate studies at DUT, and I am glad to share that six of them remain on track to complete their programmes this year. This achievement speaks volume about the academic resilience and excellence of our students, faculty and staff at ABUAD who continue to do great things wherever they find themselves in the world.”