Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has praised the Lux Mundi University, Afara Umuahia for the external collaborative partnerships with reputable institutions in its efforts to train high quality manpower that can compete in the global job market.
He made the commendation when he received the Board of Trustees of Lux Mundi that came to inform him that its partnership with the Home Health Aide Training Institute (HHATI), Westbury New York, United States of America (USA) has begun to yield good results.
Otti was informed that 50 nursing science students of Lux Mundi, the first private university in the state capital, have been selected for an exchange programme at HHATI, which would commence next month.
The governor said that he was delighted to hear the cheering news, noting that the focus of the privately-owned tertiary institution aligns with the agenda of his administration as education and health are among the top priorities.
He also commended Lux Mundi University for introducing the Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences which would contribute to the training of the high quality manpower needed in the health sector.
“For us in the state, the major things you put on the table are part of our agenda since we came in 2023 – education and health,” he said.
Otti noted that the two sectors are at the apex of the priority table hence “in the last 24 months, we have allocated 15 per cent of our Budget to health and 20 per cent to Education.”
He expressed delight and thanked the Chief Executive of HHATI, Dr. Maria Santiago, for the partnership with Lux Mundi University, assuring her that she would not regret the outcome.
She expressed her gratitude to Governor Otti for his trust in Lux Mundi University and assured him that she would do her best to support the university to succeed.
The founder and Pro-Chancellor of Lux Mundi University lauded Otti for his transformative leadership in Abia, saying that he has already written a book on Transformative Leadership, using the Abia governor as a case study.
According to him, what is happening in the new Abia under Otti’s visionary leadership is the fulfillment of the content of his book, which has turned out to be prophetic.
Earlier in his speech, the alternate chairman of the board of trustees of Lux Mundi University, Prof. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, who led the team, thanked Otti for receiving them and their partners from the US.
Both Santiago and Audi were later conferred with chieftaincy titles by the traditional ruler of Afara community, the host of Lux Mundi University.
At a special reception organised by the university, the new chiefs were treated to cultural displays, including cultural dances by the students, as well as Ohafia War dancers and Afara masquerades that came to perform.