As part of efforts to enhance staff knowledge in the 21st century work-place, the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Prof. Abdullahi Bala, fsssn has flagged off a five-day training on Advanced Digital Appreciation Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADAPTI) on Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Internet and Office Productivity Tools (IOPTs) for Principal Officers and other staff of the University.
The flag-off ceremony took place today, Monday, August 24, 2020 at the Centre for Preliminary & Extra-Mural Studies (CPES), Bosso Campus, Minna.
Speaking at the event, Prof. Bala expressed gratitude to the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) for swiftly responding to the training requirements of the institution’s staff, noting that the training has enhanced the quality and performance of work done by staff of the University who have undergone the capacity-building sessions in the past.
The Vice-Chancellor advised staff of the institution to always take advantage of these trainings, urging them to cooperate with the instructors so that they can get all the needful insights inherent in the trainings.
“Let us always take advantage of every opportunity that we have in terms of training. This training will remain with us for the rest of our lives. We are doing it for ourselves because if we are leaving FUTMinna tomorrow, we are going with the knowledge.
“There is nothing like executive training today despite the fact that I am also attending the training. I am a trainee today and after I perform the flag-off ceremony of this training, I will drop my hat of Vice-Chancellor and put on the hat of a trainee. I will subject myself to all the rules and regulations governing the training,” he advised.
Earlier in his address, the Manager Research and Publications Unit, DBI, Mr. Chukwuemeka Nzeih thanked the University Management under the leadership of Prof. Abdullahi Bala for always showing keen interest in the training of the institution’s staff and expressed appreciation for the honour given to them to train the University’s Principal Officers with other staff.
Mr. Nzeih said FUTMinna is highly ranked by the DBI among tertiary institutions in the country based on the University’s desire to always provide a platform for its staff to acquire IT knowledge, while expressing optimism that the training would further advance the noble heights that the institution has attained.
He solicited for the cooperation of participants in order to make the training exercise interactive and rewarding.
Speaking while delivering the welcome address, the Director of the University’s Information & Technology Service (ITS), Dr. Mohammed Adamu said the training was part of the Vice-Chancellor’s desire to ensure that all staff of the University are not left behind in the present digital age.
Dr. Adamu further applauded DBI for their constant support to the University in terms of human capacity training as well as engaging some of the institution’s staff as one of its National Instructors. He stated that today’s training is special because the Vice-Chancellor and other Principal Officers of the University are also participating in it.
He advised participants to pay rapt attention and cooperate with the instructors so that the aim of the training would be achieved.
The session, which is the seventh in the series, has witnessed the training of over 700 staff of the University within four years.
DBI is Nigeria’s foremost Centre of Excellence in Information and Communication.