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The Executive Governor of Oyo State, Governor Oluwaseyi Makinde, has expressed keen interest in fostering collaboration between the University of Botswana (UB) and universities in Oyo State. Governor Makinde expressed this during a courtesy visit by UB Vice Chancellor, Professor David Norris, in Ibadan, Nigeria on the 22nd February 2024. He underscored Ibadan's historical significance as the intellectual hub of Africa, given the renowned University of Ibadan, which has educated numerous African leaders.

Notably, Oyo State with a population of close to eight (8) million people, has 12 universities, one of which belongs to the federal Government, three (3) to the state Government while eight (8) are privately owned. Consequently, Governor Makinde outlined four (4) key areas of cooperation, highlighting education as one of the major pillars underpinning the socio-economic development of Oyo State.

Such goals could be realised through initiatives such as student and staff exchanges, he emphasised, urging officials to work towards making these collaborations a reality. On welcoming the Vice Chancellor and his entourage to his office, Governor Makinde expressed a special affinity for Botswana, revealing that beyond visiting the country, one of his economic advisors on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AcFTA) was a Motswana.

Earlier, Professor Norris echoed similar sentiments, emphasising the importance of African universities collaborating to drive the continent's development agenda instead of solely relying on foreign expertise. “We are here for co-creation to drive the African Union’s (AU) development Agenda 2063,” he echoed.

Professor Norris highlighted Africa's wealth of expertise across various fields but lamented missed opportunities for its universities to collaborate in developing models to drive socio-economic development. In addition, he expressed regret that often external consultancies were sought notwithstanding that Africa had capacity to handle such tasks internally.

"Often consultancies are undertaken by external consultants from overseas when we are here and have the capacity and expertise to handle the consultancies too. We should not always be consumers," he emphasised, advocating for leveraging internal resources and expertise.

Professor Norris expressed gratitude for the significant contributions of Nigerian professors during the infancy stages of the University of Botswana. He also highlighted the reciprocal relationship, noting that the University has trained numerous Nigerian students in both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. "We take pride in our Nigerian alumni and the invaluable contributions Nigeria has made to Botswana," observed Professor Norris.

Professor Norris is in Ibadan as one of the keynote speakers at the International Study Abroad Fair (ISAF) and Conference 2024 under the theme; “Accessing Education Beyond Border; Embracing Global Opportunities.” The binary event is taking place at the Thomas Oritsejolomi Hall, International Conference Centre (ICC) on the 23rd February 2024.

ISAF is an international educational event designed to provide a dedicated platform to discuss how to harness global opportunities through international education and also present help to turn prospective students’ aspirations of studying abroad to reality. Professor Norris is speaking on the topic, The Power of International Education: Transforming Lives and Shaping the Future. He will further participate in a panel discussion on the topic: Measuring and Assessing the Benefits of International Strategic Partnerships in Student Exchange Programme.

He is accompanied by the Deputy Vice Chancellor Teaching and Learning, Professor Georges Ekosse, Director, Public Affairs, Dr Faith Rapuleng-Tuelo, Senior Executive Assistant to the Vice Chancellor, Mr Moeng Segaetsho and Executive Assistant to the Deputy Vice Chancellor Teaching and Learning, Mrs Matshediso Zungu as well as Mr Thomas Nkhoma, Public Affairs Officer - Media.