The call was made during a two-day conference organised by
the Public Affairs Section of the US Consulate-General as part of efforts to
strengthen the education system in Nigeria.
One of the U.S. higher education experts, Dr. Patrick
Bennett, vice-president of Academic Quality and Planning at Franklin
University, Ohio, shared the U.S perspective on higher education partnerships
and funding.
Dr. Bennett discussed best practices in exploring potential
revenue streams and resources outside of government funding for higher
education and how universities can build and maintain productive relationships
with alumni, private sector, and other donor institutions.
"There has been a deeper understanding of each other's
educational systems. "Through technology, we have the opportunities to
link more universities together in our increasingly globalized world," he
said.
The U.S Mission has a longstanding commitment to supporting
educational institutions and strengthening an education system that enables
students to access quality education throughout Nigeria.
One of the U.S Government-sponsored academic exchanges is
the Fulbright program which provides opportunities for Nigerian university
students and faculty members to engage in collaborative research in U.S
institutions across various academic fields.
Mobilising over 30 vice-chancellors from Nigeria's federal,
state, and private universities, five U.S higher education experts and
representatives from the Nigeria Universities Commission, explored
opportunities for building and sustaining institutional partnerships and ideas
for joint degree programs.
The move by the U.S Consulate-General was to collaborate
with Nigerian universities - both public and private - especially as funding to
seek foreign education has remained uncertain for Nigerian families.
In his opening remarks, the Public Affairs Officer, U.S
Consulate, Stephen Ibelli highlighted the U.S Mission's commitment to
supporting initiatives that strengthen educational and cultural ties between
Nigeria and the United States.
He explained that the overarching goal of the conference was
to build on the longstanding U.S-Nigeria educational ties by opening new
frontiers of partnerships capable of enhancing the quality of learning,
teaching and research, as well as bolstering the global competitiveness of
higher educational institutions in Nigeria.
"This is a giant step forward," Ibelli said.
"Bringing U.S and Nigerian universities closer together, exploring future
partnerships and discussing ideas for joint degrees with American experts, were
great outcomes of the higher education conference."
The U.S-Nigeria academic partnerships are committed to
supporting initiatives that promote access to quality education and strengthen
human capital for inclusive economic growth and development in Nigeria.