Enugu gov, Austrian investor bag honorary doctorate from ESUT

The Enugu State University of Science and Technology has awarded honorary doctoral degrees in Business Administration and Corporate Governance to Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, and an Austrian investor, Sir Bernd Bergmair.

The ESUT Governing Council and Senate conferred the award on the duo during the institution’s 20th convocation on November 23, 2024, at the main campus in Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu.

The ESUT Vice Chancellor, Prof Aloysius-Michaels Okolie, stated that the award was in recognition of Bergmair’s achievements as an outstanding independent investor, global actor and philanthropist.

“The university committee has continued to observe your concrete achievements in the areas of investment, industry and innovation. We have followed your achievements with great satisfaction and noted, inter alia, that most of your areas of investment and intervention align with the vision and ideals of the university’s founding fathers. It is in recognition of this that the university has elected to appreciate your laudable efforts.

“The institution resolved to award honorary degrees to distinguished personalities whose conduct, achievements and contributions to sustainable human capital development align with its vision as the foremost university of science and technology in Africa,” Okolie said.

According to him, ESUT, in line with its motto, ‘Technology for Service’, pursues its goal of creating/developing, nurturing, advancing, applying and deepening autonomous technological knowledge for dealing with the demands of contemporary society.

“As a technologically-driven citadel of learning, the institution aims at driving a revolution in technological re-invention of the black race and to instigate and stimulate rapid societal transmogrification of Nigeria in particular, and the black race in general,” he added.

The vice chancellor said the ESUT management had made giant strides since its inception, including the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with COEFA to enhance the institution’s focus on capacity building, skills development and employability, “even as the university is pursuing an MOU with a United States provider for engineering automation.”

Mbah lauded the remarkable achievements of 8,437 graduates, including nine with first class.

He said: “It was an honour to be conferred with an Honorary Doctorate in Business Administration and Corporate Governance, a recognition I deeply cherish as a testament to our shared vision for educational transformation in Enugu.

“I can say that ESUT has regained its glory as a centre of excellence. From cutting-edge innovations like Prof Cyprian Mgbachi’s cooking stove-cell phone battery charger to the accreditation of 97 per cent of ESUT’s programmes, the progress is undeniable. To further encourage innovation, we announced a N50m grant to Prof Mgbachi, complemented by an additional N52m support from our esteemed honorary doctoral degree co-recipient, Mr Bergmair.”

Unveiling plans to establish a Centre for Experiential Learning at ESUT, the governor said, “This hub will immerse professors and students in practical, hands-on learning to drive technological advancement.

“Beyond that, our administration has committed over N1.6bn to infrastructure expansion at ESUT, alongside investments in laboratories, curriculum reforms and research initiatives that will elevate all state-owned tertiary institutions in Enugu.”

For his part, the investor, a former Goldman, Sachs & Co associate, donated a new 140KW solar PV system to generate up to 220 megawatt-hours annually of electricity which provides 24/7 off-grid power to the Faculty of Management Sciences.

The solar PV system, installed by Greenage Technologies, energises both Blocks A and B of the Faculty of Management Sciences of the university. It also comprises Internet infrastructure, and one year of Internet access for the faculty.

According to Greenage Technologies, the PV system comprises of an array of 140 kW mono-crystalline solar PVs. It is designed to trap the most UV rays and is interconnected through the combiner box for maximum power tracking embedded in the synchronised inverters.

Greenage explained that the inverters, fitted with the charge controller and battery management systems, charge the synchronised lithium batteries, as well as provide AC power output to energise offices, classrooms, auditoriums and other facilities in the university.

The company said in a statement, “The solar panels are an improved technology and are rated at 140KW. Synchronous input inverters are designed to enable optimal load distribution and efficient battery usage for longer inverter and battery life. The efficient load distribution reduces the strain and depth of discharge in each battery cell.”