th ISSN 0795-3089 16 May, 2016 Vol. 11 No. 19 NCCNCC BossBoss atat NUC,NUC, TToursours NgRENNgREN L-R: Executive Secretary, NUC, Prof. Julius A. Okojie, with Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Professor Umaru Garba Danbatta he Executive Vice- Secretary, National Universities Nigerian universities and other Chairman and Chief Commission (NUC), Professor RENs around the world. The visit TExecutive of the Nigerian Julius A. Okojie, OON, and the afforded the NCC Boss the Communications Commission Nigerian Research and Education opportunity to identify areas of (NCC), Professor Umar Garba Network (NgREN) facilities, to mutual collaboration with the Danbatta, on Friday, 13 May, see firsthand the NgREN Project, NUC, in order to join forces 2016, paid a visit to his which has increased opportunities together in deploying critical counterpart, the Executive for collaborative research amongst infrastructure to improve in this edition... NUC Trains Page. ES Advocates Greater Page. Senator Garba Page. NUC Sports Club Page. Varsities on ODL Opportunities for Appreciates God Joins FEPGSA Teaching Delivery No. 5 People with Disabilities No. 8 for Achievements No. 10 No. 13 Pg. 2 16thMay, 2016 With the Project, he said, the agency had provided and distributed a total of 109 optical fibre cables, to 17 First and Second Generation universities, aimed at a total coverage of their interconnectivity with one another. NCC also deployed 15 smartrooms for teaching delivery, which, he noted, had reduced the stress of classroom interaction between lecturers and students where they are in use. He relived his personal experience with the smartroom tool, which he used to Profs. Okojie and Danbatta in an interaction, flanked by NUC Officials before the visit to prepare his lectures at Bayero the NgREN Facility University, Kano (BUK), and was able to deliver the course contents r e s o u r c e - s h a r i n g a m o n g the Nigerian University System at less time and maximum institutions. (NUS), wider consultations would efficiency. enable stakeholders achieve more Receiving his Visitor, Professor fruitful results when such While at the NgREN, the Project Okojie commended the efforts of synergies are formed and would Manager and NUC Deputy t h e N C C a t d e p l o y i n g also lead to avoidance of Director, ICT Projects, Dr. Joshua Information and Communication duplications of efforts in the Atah, informed the visitor that the Technology (ICT) in the system. Network, since its official universities. He said that the commissioning in July 2014, had Commission had noticed some of In his remarks, Professor Danbatta brought several benefits to the contributions of the disclosed that the NCC had been Nigerian institutions. He Communications agency towards offering assistance to the specifically noted that the REN the provision of some ICT universities through a Project it had recently partnered with infrastructure such as fibre optic designed known as 'Inter- E B S C O H o s t , t o p r o v i d e c a b l e s , s m a r t r o o m s f o r University Connectivity Network'. electronic content, including e- exploration of digital contents in teaching delivery and Close Circuit Television (CCTV) Surveillance equipment to improve security networks in the campuses. The Executive Secretary, however, observed that to ensure economy of scale and the judicious utilisation of scarce resources among government agencies, NUC needed to be consulted in matters involving interventions on such critical infrastructure required by the universities as the regulator. According to him, with a lot of NgREN Project Manager and Deputy Director, ICT Projects, Dr. Joshua Atah, explaining the workings of the REN to Prof. Danbatta facilities requiring upgrading in MONDAY BULLETIN - A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary Pg. 3 16thMay, 2016 books, journals and academic Association of Nigerian Physician noted, was the driver of the magazines, valued at 4 Million in America (ANPA), to provide n a t i o n ' s e c o n o m y . H e dollars to Nigerian universities. teaching, research and other forms commended the Network and He said that subscribers on the of assistance to enhance the pledged that his Commission REN have now been able to save nation's education sector. would work with the NUC to on the cost of bandwidth, which identify the challenges of the initially cost USD 1260mbps and The NCC EVC, who was REN so that they could has now dropped to USD impressed by the activities of the effectively intervene in some of 59mbps. REN, interacted by video those challenges. Dr. Atah disclosed that the conferencing with two subscriber NgREN was currently working institutions – Federal University, To this end, the visitors and the with Nigerian Universities to Lafia (FULafia) and Nnamdi NUC agreed to immediately digitalise content so as enable Azikwe University, Akwa. The constitute a technical committee effective sharing of their EVC assured the NUC of the to include members from NUC, resources on the platform. He NCC's commitment in deploying NgREN, NCC, and the USPF to added that the Network had also ICT infrastructure to critical areas discuss the nitty-gritty of the partnered with Nigerians in the of need, particularly in the collaboration. Diaspora, particularly the university system, which, he The NCC delegation and the NUC Management team, interacting by Video Conferencing with some universities connected to the REN MONDAY BULLETIN - A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary Pg. 4 16thMay, 2016 Prof. Okojie presenting the NgREN Plaque to Prof. Danbatta L-R: Prof. Okojie, 4th left, Prof. Danbatta, 3rd left, in a group photograph with some members of NUC Management and the NCC delegation MONDAY BULLETIN - A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary Pg. 5 16thMay, 2016 NUC Trains Varsities on ODL Teaching Delivery students. He expressed concern that some universities were not taking advantage of the technological innovation in the Nigerian University System (NUS) and called for more attitudinal change. Professor Okojie observed that older academics were challenged by the smartness of the younger generation, due to the latter's exposure to modern technology. NUC, he said, recognised this and had been on the forefront of ensuring the deployment of ICT infrastructure and web contents Prof. Julius A. Okojie Executive Secretary, NUC for the benefit of the system. One of such initiatives was the recent p a r t n e r s h i p b e t w e e n t h e he National Universities generation of students that were Commission and South Africa- Commission (NUC), in already conversant with ICT. He based EBSCOhost, for the Tconjunction with Applied i n f o r m e d t h e m t h a t t h e hosting of e-books and journals Tech and Environ Sciences (Nig) Commission's partner in the for easy access by universities Ltd, Abuja, organised a two-day training was an expert in the use of that are connected to the Nigerian Tr a i n - t h e - Tr a i n e r ( T T T ) Blackboard Collaborate, a user- Research and Education Network Wo r k s h o p f o r D i r e c t o r s , friendly and easily scalable (NgREN) Platform. facilitators of Open and Distance modern tool for teaching large Learning (ODL) as well as other classes. The contents and e-Learning programmes in resources provided by this While urging the participants to Nigerian universities. The aim of teaching tool, he said, were not make good use of the opportunity the Workshop was to equip the internet-restricted, but offer a offered by the training to improve participants, drawn from seven platform for storing its contents on services in their universities, institutions operating ODL virtually and which are retrievable the Executive Secretary disclosed Centres and the National Open for use by students who could not that the second phase of the University of Nigeria (NOUN) participate in the classes. With NgREN would soon commence. with requisite ICT skills and Blackboard Collaborate virtual He, therefore, called on the competence for quality delivery classroom, he added, a subscriber universities to connect to the of university education. had unlimited access to digital network, in order to achieve contents, real time. economies of scale in the use of Declaring the Workshop open, at ICT for teaching, learning and the NgREN Secretariat Building T h e E x e c u t i v e S e c r e t a r y research purposes. in the NUC, on Monday, 9 May, explained that the platform offered 2016, the Executive Secretary, universities a lot of opportunities In her remarks, NUC Director, Professor Julius A. Okojie, OON, for mutual collaboration on challenged the participants to be information sharing and resource Open and Distance Education o n t h e c u t t i n g - e d g e o f management. He noted that the (DODE), Dr. Olamide. E. Information and Communication Blackboard Collaborate make Adesina, said that the capacity Technology (ICT) tools, in order teaching and learning more building exercise was significant to remain relevant to the present pleasurable for both teachers and for the ODL Centres as it MONDAY BULLETIN - A Publication of The Office of The Executive Secretary Pg. 6 16thMay, 2016 learning experience, and potentially increase the revenue stream of a university from on- campus and distance education students. On the rationale behind the workshop, Professor Ayorinde s a i d i t w a s t o p r o v i d e the ODL personnel with skills and competences necessary to present lectures online.