Stories by Bode Adewumi
Bowen University, Iwo in Osun State, has radically challenged the status-quo recently when it formally launched its specialised Innovation and Entrepreneurship Revolution Hub, at a week-long activity-packed programme on the campus of the University.
Whereas, the robust package included other activities, the icing on the cake was the Executive Session, which involved intensive practical expositions of secrets to creating and nurturing a very successful Start-up businesses by invited reputable technopreneurs and entrepreneursm who have left positive mark on the industry and the unveiling of a high-end Campus security solution developed by Bowen students.
The University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Joshua Ogunwole, through the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Akande reiterated that Bowen University has completely re-engineered the students’ learning and empowerment from mere academic excellence, to a more holistic bundle, which includes academic excellence and practical-based entrepreneurship and innovation skills acquisition.
He said Bowen University products are now better positioned through the integrated entrepreneurship scheme so as not to be mere job-seekers on graduation but wealth creators.
The invited dignitaries and organisations included: Dr Femi Oyenuga of ORACLE (ECEMEA architecture innovation and strategy); Mr Macauley Atasie, the Founder of Nextzon Organisation, Mr Tim Akano, Chief Executive Officer of New Horizons Nigeria and Mr Samuel Ekpe, an ex-Bowenite, who is the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Plato Hub.
One other major highlight of the day was the unveiling of the e-Security Campus Solution developed by the Bowen students under New Horizons mentorship.
Speaking on the utility of the e-Security solution, one of the Project team members, Akinluwa Mercy, a 200-level student of Medicine and surgery, said the solution has the capacity to tackle campus security and other related challenges in the school environs.
The second related activity that stole the day was the Projects Ideas award offers by the MD/CEO of New Horizons, in which he offered $6,000 to the 3 best students’ problem-solving Project Ideas that are capable of helping the university, country and the world at large. Akano commended the students for being teachable when being mentored by New Horizons on the security project, and that as undergraduates they have to be innovative and ready to solve problems rather than complain about the situation in their environment.
He said being a partner to the University, New Horizons as the largest ICT Training Organisation in the world with deep and global experience in technology, will support the Bowen Entrepreneurship & Technology Hub as an annual event, in which project development mentorship as well as project showcase to invited reputable industry practitioners who can adopt any projects that may be useful to their organisations, as well as support with funding and projects commercialisation will be the hallmark.
In the same vein, Dr Olusanya affirmed that the 4th industrial revolution pervading the world is about transformational technology which is driven by 5G, block chain tech, internet of things, and artificial intelligence. He said if summarized in a language that all will understand, it means that the problems of transportation, agriculture and industry can now be solved with artificial intelligence and that technopreneurship is the way to go for the present generation.
Contributing, Okechukwu of Nextzon, said the organisation was ready to package the worthy projects developed by the students in such a way that reputable Investors will actively give reasonable financial sponsorship and backing that will ensure successful commercialisation of the developed projects.
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