The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Kolawole Salako has reaffirmed the University’s commitment to global best practices and internationalization that will place the University at par with other world class Institutions.
Speaking during a Training on Institutional Capacity for Deans, Directors and Heads of Departments by the Gender Responsiveness in Agricultural Research and Development, Professor Salako who was represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development), Professor Lateef Sanni stated that the University intends to achieve this feat through training and retraining for enhanced efficiency and productivity.
The Vice-Chancellor noted that the University will always embrace best global practices such as Gender responsiveness, adding that capacity building is one of the core vision of the current administration.
He commended the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) for funding the training, while particularly lauding AWARD for its journey with the University which he said spans over 10 years.
Speaking on the Internationalization drive of the University, the Vice- Chancellor revealed that the Institution has an International Centre for Professional Development (ICPD) where international and professional examinations such as Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), ORACLE among other examinations are held.
Earlier in her remarks, the Deputy Director, AWARD, Michele Mbo’o Tchouawou revealed that the objective of the training is to create awareness on the importance of gender in the research sector, get shared understanding of key terms and concepts as well as explore how gender responsiveness or lack of it affects the performance of institutions. She disclosed that AWARD as an Institution is aimed at creating visibility for Women Scientists and creating awareness within institutions where they work, adding that though AWARD started as a programme, it has since become an institution which is working for the benefit of all. According to her “we are not working for the benefit of our own. We are working to ensure that in Africa, we can count the contributions and ensure that these contributions are making sense”.
The Deputy Director noted that FUNAAB and AWARD have a beautiful relationship, adding that the two Institutions have been able to sustain the partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) they signed.
She said AWARD would continue to mobilize for more resources to be able to continue its work in Africa while stressing that one of the measures that institution has put in place for feedback is regular Progress Review Meetings whereby analysis are made on lessons derived from previous trainings implementation within the institution.
Delivering her paper on Gender Matters, the resource person Mrs. Anne Marie Nyamu examined the different roles and activities played by men and women in the society. According to her, contrary to the belief that gender is the same as sex, “Gender refers to socially constructed roles, responsibilities, expectations, rights, privileges and exclusions assigned to males and females. Nyamu encouraged leaders to be conscious of the ways they interact with people in their organization as they come from different backgrounds with different mindset and orientation. Meanwhile, as part of AWARD’s feedback on trainings organized, a Mentoring Evaluation Workshop was held to assess the progress made by staff mentees who were assigned to mentors about three months ago.
