THURSDAY- 2nd December, 2021: The Association of Nigeria University Professional Administrators (ANUPA) held its annual national conference from 23rd to 27th November 2021.
The 3-day conference was held at the Public Service Institute in Abuja.
With this year's event themed “Crisis, Collaboration and the future of higher education in Nigeria following the challenges of the covid-19 pandemic”, it definitely lived its billing as it was a gathering of elites from Universities across the nation.
The President of the association, Barr.Titus Ifeanyi Igwe in his opening remark expressed gratitude and welcomed everyone to this year’s conference. Last year the conference was not held due to the outbreak of covid-19 pandemic. “The year 2020 with the attendant covid-19 pandemic was a great challenge to us both as individually and organization.
"The pandemic stalled our ritual of meeting every November or December each to take a stock of our progress and challenges as an association. It virtually affected every facet of our dear life and career and indeed deeply touched our perceptions. It also reawakened us to the daunting challenges of the 21st Century University Administration.”
According to Barr. Igwe this year’s theme is timely and key, stating that some of the issues to be addressed include; crisis of leadership succession, challenges of excellence in Nigerian University among others.
“These topics were carefully chosen to address the critical challenges of University Administrators and the Nigerian Education System in meeting expectations of the 21st Century knowledge economy. The critical security challenges currently in Nigeria and its reverberating effects on students and education also have deepening effects on the environment of Higher Education managers.” he said.
This year’s conference is special as it will feature the Annual general meeting and the elections of new executives.
However, the president appealed to members to co-operate with the newly elected leaders in order to advance the course of ANUPA. “my advice is that people should live beyond personal interest and put ANUPA first. They should look out for leaders with vision and capacity. They should be able impel members of administrators who will have a focus and build a focused leadership and continue with some of the things we have set on ground to build on it, to ensure that they work to strengthen it and achieve it."Igwe clearly stated.
In an interview with CEOAFRICA, the president reiterated some of the achievement of his administration in the association.
Barr. Igwe said “before coming onboard Tetfund didn’t quite know about ANUPA. We moved into synergies and created awareness on the existence of ANUPA, its objectives, aims and what it stands for with the National University Commissions coming to give keynote addresses in opening ceremonies and trainings of ANUPA. We acquired a bus to help ease off transportation of National officers and aid them to do their work. We strengthened training to ensure that the training gets to everybody. There is training for junior university administrators and Top Management. We maintained a rigid consistency apart from 2020 because covid-19 where we didn’t have our AGM and the training for junior and senior administrators. This time, you see a time table Junior Administrators April, May, senior administrators July; AGM and convention November consistently”.
He furthered stated that there are challenges as dealing with people is not easy but his administration have been able to overcoming the issues fractions among members by uniting ANUPA to be one body.
According Mr. Igwe, efforts have been put in place through consultations to ensure that the bill for making ANUPA chattered is passed by the national assembly to enable the association to recognized as a chattered body of university administrators.
In his final remark, he told the news crew that he hopes that ANUPA becomes a source, a symbol of excellence and build relevant capacity for members to perform effectively and adequately to produce a better set of graduates from the system.
The national treasurer of the association Mrs. Teena Ugbomah from Delta state university Abraka, described the leadership of the association as hardworking and goal-oriented stating that they have been able to build a secretariat for the association and worked towards uniting members despite the challenges of political fractions among members.
“The truth is that this current administration has done well and the proofs are there to show. This current administration built a secretariat though not completed yet; it has reached a stage that meetings can be held the place. It’s been a wonderful administration, miles that have not been reached before now was reached and it has ANUPA very enviable”. She said
Mrs. Ugbomah further stated that very soon ANUPA will out shine other associations among the University system in Nigeria. “ I see ANUPA as the only association in the University system that everybody wants to join, the executive officers all want to join ANUPA because ANUPA is the training arm of the university system and the desire of every administrator is to become a registrar and you need to be grounded and is only ANUPA that does that. There is no registrar who is not a member of ANUPA and we take our trainings very seriously”.
She commended the effort of the outgoing president of the association for being goal-oriented and purpose driven, which has led to the progress and the progress of the association during the five year term in office and encourages the executive to follow suit.
“The truth is that he is a man of vision. He sets a goal and he achieves it. He has a drive, he has a passion for ANUPA and from the period I have worked with him I see that he wants to achieve whatever goal he has set to achieve.” she added.
Speaking CEO news crew, the outgoing national treasurer, Barr. Mrs. Lami Termine from University of Jos, stated the need for the senate to pass a bill for the approval of the association to become chattered for recognition in Nigeria being a body that trains administrators in the university system.
She said, “Under this administration there has been a passion, first of all to become ANUPA chattered because we have not been chattered people just come and get certificate and go. We need to get a bill passed by the national assembly so that it is recognized officially as professional body for the University administrators. We have tried and put a lot of things in place to get it registered.”
She expressed hope that ANUPA will be recognized even outside Nigeria and other African countries. “The output are better and people are showing more interest, a lot of branches have been inaugurated; a lot are coming onboard the incoming exco’s should take advantage of the people showing interest."
She advised the newly elected leaders to carry everyone along and continue from where the previous administration stopped.
The conference ended with the annual general meeting and election where new set of leaders were elected to stir the cause of ANUPA to the next level.
The high point of the meeting was the presentation of financial of the association before the members of the association.
One of members the association, who spoke CEO Africa news crew observed that ANUPA is making progress numerical and intellectual; With about 3000 members as at 2014 to about 9000 members.
He applauded the efforts of the past administration for exemplary leadership and enjoined the new leaders to do more.
