The social purpose of higher education was the plank upon which discussions at the 16th UNILAG Research Conference & Fair took off on Tuesday, October 10, 2023 at the Tayo Aderinokun Hall.
On hand to lay the foundation for discussion was the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dundee, Prof. Iain Gillespie, who delivered the Keynote Address on “Unlocking the Future: Rethinking Higher Education”.
He started off his presentation with a brief history of the University of Dundee, emphasising its raison d’être as the creation, sharing, and application of knowledge to daily realities.
His words: “The University of Dundee was inaugurated in 1883 and it would interest you to know that it set out to provide higher education to both genders. Much against the established norms of the time, University of Dundee identified female education as a social need to be met, and went all out to meet it. It was therefore not a surprise that University of Dundee produced Scotland’s first female university professor”.
The Keynote Speaker noted that research continues to be one of the core functions of a university, but emphasised that if they would continue to be relevant to the dynamics of the times, universities must make their research answer social questions, and equip their graduates with capabilities to solve prevailing social problems.
In her Welcome Address, the Chairman, Central Research Committee and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics & Research), Professor Bola Oboh described the three-day event as the first in-person conference since the 2020 pandemic.
“It is the first edition to be integrated with the International Week, and that is a development we hope to continue with”, she said.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, OON, FAS, was present to declare the conference open.
She congratulated the organising committee for the successful commencement of the conference and charged participants to seize the opportunity to share their knowledge for the advancement of higher education in Nigeria.
Chairman of the Conference Planning Committee, Prof. A. Okanlawon, gave the Vote of Thanks.
The 16th UNILAG Annual Research Conference & Fair will run from Tuesday, October 10 to Thursday, October 12, 2023.
