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Why youths remained pillars of Africa’s fourth industrial revolution, global competitiveness, by Ooni, UI VC

By m Rotimi Agboluaje and Moyosore Salami, Ibadan
25 May 2022   |   2:39 am
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan (UI), Prof. Kayode Adebowale, have said that youths remained the pillars

University of Ibadan

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan (UI), Prof. Kayode Adebowale, have said that youths remained the pillars of Africa’s fourth industrial revolution and global competitiveness.

Oba Adeyeye and Prof. Adebowale emphasised that the youths have a central role to play in fostering prosperity on the African continent for the next generation.

According to a statement made available to journalists in Ibadan, yesterday, by Principal Assistant Registrar/Public Relations Officer of the Directorate of Public Communication of the university, Mrs. Adejoke Akinpelu, the duo spoke during the presentation of awards and induction by the monarch to beneficiaries of the Royal African Young Leadership Forum.

Oba Adeyeye, who is the initiator of the programme, said the youths needed to find a common deep-rooted devotion and build a blueprint of inclusiveness that would sustainably promote their greater equities in Africa’s projects.

The monarch said this could be achieved through governance and leadership, technology and innovation, entrepreneurship and empowerment, creative culture and academic excellence, which are the five pillars of his royal mission.

Adebowale said the collaboration between the UI and the Royal African Young Innovators (RAYI) would birth various innovations that would transform the nation, continent and the entire globe.

He said he strongly believed that the choice of UI as the anchor university for the RAYI project was premised on the fact that it is Nigeria’s premier university ranked the best in Nigeria, the first in West Africa and the seventh in Africa, according to the Times Higher Education ranking of 2021.

He noted that the readiness of the initiator was never in doubt to supply other needed resources required for the achievement of the objectives of RAYI.

The VC added that the UI-RAYI partnership would raise inspirational youths who will become future leaders in entrepreneurship, technology, innovation, and creativity, which will strongly support the development of Africa’s modernisation and industrialisation.

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