Anambra varsity, tech firm partner to drive AI inclusion among students

The Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, Anambra State and Bredhub-UBTECH, have announced a partnership to drive Artificial Intelligence and robotics inclusion for the students and other community members of the institution.

To achieve this, both parties have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for “Artificial Intelligence and Robotics education”, to equip students and other members of the institution to experience Robots and also learn to programme them.

During the MoU signing ceremony at the office of the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Kate Omenugha, on Tuesday, the importance of equipping the young ones with artificial intelligence to align with its disruptive change, identifying problems and driving solutions with the innovation was highly emphasised.

Speaking during the ceremony, the vice-chancellor noted that the students and the community environment have a lot to gain from the exercise, as it is one of the things the school can do to equip society and the young ones for the disruptive change taking place globally.

She said, “I feel very excited about this partnership because this is the kind of disruptive change we want to create in this university. When we came into this institution, we wanted to add education and social spice to what we are doing and I am a bit fulfilled that this exercise will drive the process.

“The school has to key into this innovation because there are many things to learn. We want, not just the students, but the entire school community and the outside environment, including children out there to key into this. It is one of the things we can do to help change the society and the young people.

“We need to keep the young people busy by changing their psyche so that they become more productive and responsible to the community. We are going to use both the internal and external publics of the institution to drive this exercise because it is something we are going to find both rewarding and fulfilling.”

Earlier, in his speech, the Managing Director/CEO of Anambra State ICT Agency, Chukwuemeka Agbata, described the partnership as a phenomenal change that is about to happen to the university, adding that it would enable the institution to have access to technology that is currently disrupting the whole world.

Agbata, who advocated the review of educational curriculum to allow ICT, noted that the university system plays a very important role in energising the Anambra tech drive that the governor is aiming to achieve, adding it is no coincidence that the exercise is flagging off at the institution.

Also speaking, the Managing Director/CEO, Bredhub-UBTECH, Michael Ahamefule, described the partnership as a great opportunity for both the institution and the firm as it has opened the window for innovations to commence.

Ahamefule said, “Training the students of the institutions on AI and robotics will have a significant impact on their future careers and the wider society. It will prepare them for the future job market. AI and robotics are increasingly being adopted across industries, and training students in these areas can prepare them for the changing job market.

“The world has moved away from analogue and we are in the fourth revolution. It is a way of equipping them with innovations to enable them to identify problems and proffer solutions using technology. This opportunity will give our students the leap they need to join the revolutionary world.

“By training students in higher institutions on AI and robotics, we can empower them to shape the future and address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

“The signing of the MOU is the formal agreement and partnership to collaborate and work together with the institution towards equipping the students and the university community on AI and robotics.”

After the MoU signing ceremony at the VC’s office, students of the institution were allowed to experience AI and Robots and also learn to program them.

The robotics demo was done at the Faculty of Social Sciences, where a handful of students, who were in attendance, expressed delight at the experience of handling and programming robots.

One of the students from the Department of Political Science, Ifeoma Okeke, said, “It is a memorable experience. I learnt how to use the tools to identify and solve problems and I believe this will help the students greatly in accessing the technological innovations they need in proffering solutions in our various fields.”