German Trained Nigerian professionals Hold conference in Ibadan

 Over 150 professionals from Nigeria that were trained in Germany with a scholarship from

the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) will gather in Ibadan from Saturday, 7th to 9th December, 2013 for a conference entitled “Sustainable Development in Africa’s Biggest Oil Producing Economy.”

The conference, which will partly take place at the International Institute of Tropical

Agriculture – IITA and the University of Ibadan, will be officially opened on December

7th, 2013, by HE Dorothee Janetzke-Wenzel, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of

Germany to Nigeria, Professor Adewole, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Dr.

Helmut Blumbach, Director Southern Hemisphere Department at DAAD and Professor Ajayi,

President of the DAAD Alumni Association of Nigeria.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Power, Ambassador Dr. Godknows Boladei Igali

will deliver the keynote address on ‘sustainable development in Africa’s biggest oil producing

economy.’ Furthermore, a delegation of high-profile German and Nigerian academics will contribute to the conference through lectures, workshops and panel discussions. HE Michael Derus, Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany to Nigeria and other representatives of German organisations in Nigeria will attend the event as well, making it an excellent occasion

to network.

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is an organisation of German higher

education institutions and their student bodies which promote the internationalisation of the

higher education system. It awards scholarships to outstanding students and researchers in

Germany and abroad, providing them with the opportunity to study or conduct research in a

different country. At the same time, DAAD works to create the institutional and structural

conditions for the transnational university of tomorrow, by funding cross-border university

collaboration.

Since 1960 almost 1700 Nigerian academics have been supported with a DAAD scholarship.

In 2012, 171 Nigerians benefited from such a scholarship. Many alumni have achieved important positions in Nigerian society. In order to maintain, renew, or intensify professional and personal ties with its alumni, DAAD regularly organizes conferences throughout the world with the intention to create a valuable worldwide network.

In 2013, DAAD has worked on the central theme of “Fostering International Sustainability” in

its projects and activities. The Ibadan conference will be the closing event for this thematic

emphasis.

Faith Irabor