The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Kolawole Salako has reaffirmed his support and commitment to staff training for enhanced productivity and service delivery.

Speaking during a 5-Day Training Workshop on Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), organized by the University’s Bursary Department in conjunction with the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (Federal Ministry of Finance), Professor Salako commended the Bursary Division for the initiative of organizing a Training Workshop for staff in the Department for improved service delivery.

According to the Vice-Chancellor, he strongly believes in productivity and training and would always champion the course of having a level ground for training every member of staff in the University.

Corroborating the Vice-Chancellor, the Registrar, Dr. Bola Adekola said that the GIFMIS Training is yet another opportunity for the Bursary staff to be trained.

According to him, “We have said it once or twice that this Administration puts a lot of premium on training because if we are talking about competence, the only thing that sharpens competence is training”.

Reiterating the importance of having a competent workforce, Dr. Adekola said, “In human resources, one major thing that makes human resources what you call human capital is the ability of every person that is employed in that organization to become a resource. It is when they are competent and can deliver that such persons are resources. An employee that is not delivering on his schedule is a liability rather than being a capital for the organization”.

He added that “In FUNAAB what we are trying to do is to make everybody that is employed in this University to be a resource of the University, be it gardener, be it clerical, be it the Vice-Chancellor because it is when we are delivering that we can be useful to the community and this community needs everybody”.

The Registrar appreciated the Vice-Chancellor for his continuous belief and support for training, stating that each time a proposal for training is forwarded to him, he always approves.

Earlier in his Welcome Address, the Bursar, Mr. Chukwunwike Ezekpeazu disclosed that the Training was borne out of the changes that took place in the Accountant General’s Office with regards to the operation of the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) which all tertiary institutions and Ministries, Departments and Agencies are part of.

He noted that the University’s Bursary Department took the proactive step of organizing the Training Workshop in conjunction with the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (Federal Ministry of Finance) to enlighten users of the platform on the migration from the old GIFMIS to the new GIFMIS that involves GIFMIS 1 and GIFMIS 2 while adding that the Training is probably one of the few that have taken place all over Nigerian Universities.

According to him, GIFMIS is a payment platform that can also be used for financial reporting and many other things, adding that the Training is going to be of great impact on work done in the Bursary Department.

The Bursar further informed that besides the GIFMIS training, the Bursary Department also runs a monthly internal training programme, where staffers meet to discuss our job schedule and share ideas between the young and the old.

Evaluating the performance of participants at the Closing Ceremony, the GIFMIS Southwest Zonal Coordinator, Mr. Ayo Akinrinde said the Bursary staff were wonderful and very cooperative, adding that his team would be willing to come back to the University whenever there might be need for them.

He recommended that participants should be provided with the required tools such as Tablets and Laptops to apply what they have learnt.

Mr. Akinrinde further disclosed that arrangements are ongoing to have a Support Officer in Ogun State, requesting that the University Management grants approval that the office of the Officer resides in the University.

A cross section of participants

In his Closing Remarks, the Vice-Chancellor who was represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development) Professor Lateef Sanni thanked the GIFMIS team for their support and approved their request for an Office in the University.

He reiterated Management’s commitment to training and retraining of staff while disclosing that in the course of the year, other departments will also have the privilege to undergo training in their various fields, adding that students will not be left out.

Participants from the Bursary Department and Internal Audit Directorate gave positive feedback on the training and solicited for more training to further ensure maximum productivity.