By Emeka Mamah

ENUGU——Stakeholders in the educational sector have called for collaboration between universities and the Armed Forces in a bid to update the country’s military capabilities locally. They spoke during the maiden edition of the “Town and Gown Assembly” at the Geoffrey University, in Enugu. The theme of the assembly was “Business Matters and Areas of Research.”

Vice Chancellor of the Catholic university, Rev. Father (Professor) Christian Anieke who explained that the Town and Gown Assembly was “a dialogue gathering involving the academia and the entrepreneurs, policy makers, owners of businesses and the media.”

His words, “Historically, institutions of learning came into existence as a matter of necessity; that human existence and problems need a methodological research in order to discover useful solutions. This was the origin of the town and gown metaphor that we are talking about today. It can therefore be said that town and gown is as old as the university system itself.”

Anieke, further explained that the assembly was aimed at encouraging entrepreneurs to always share their ideas and thoughts which were research worthy, promising that “the university would dish out solutions to the problems.” In his contribution, the Enugu State Commissioner for Environment, Ambassador Fidel Ayogu, said that universities could carry out researches on the problems associated with climate with a view to turning adversities to good fortunes.

Ayogu who was represented on the occasion by an official of his ministry, Nnamdi Arum, said that wastes like water bottles could be turned to block chips for building houses, adding that universities “which exist to solve problems of society and advance knowledge should carry out researches on areas where climate change could bring to fruition, the integration of technology that will enable the environment harness the opportunities therein.”

Also, other contributors spoke on security challenges facing the country in the North East and improvements in the agricultural sector and called for collaboration between universities and the military to improve on armaments that would reduce the nation’s over dependence on importation of boots for soldiers, uniforms, data management, vehicles, mobile communication masts, mobile kitchens, intelligence gatherings, artillery guns and rocket launchers among others.

Alex Ani of Alo Aluminium asked universities to invest money in prototype machines for investors as well as develop local technology, just as Ifeanyi Okoye of Juhel Pharmacy called for the allocation of 20 percent of marks to Nigerian local content as a way of solving problems around them.

They, however, lamented that most university graduates were unable to write business proposals among other business letters, pointing out that, students should be taught courses that would give them self-employment.