Three students of the First Technical, University, Ibadan, will undergo a two-month internship at Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany, later this year.

The pioneer Vice-Chancellor of Tech-U, Prof. Ayobami Salami, disclosed this on Monday while speaking at the opening of a workshop on ‘Harmonising the Curriculum on the International Master in Sustainable Environmental Management in Togo and Nigeria.’

The workshop, which was being held at Tech-U, was organised by the platform of the International SDG Network Promoting Higher Education Research in Togo and Nigeria (DAAD-TONI Project).

It is a tripartite partnership between Tech-U (with the Institute for Sustainable Development as the host academic unit in Nigeria); Goethe University, Frankfurt (with the Institute of Physical Geography and the ZIAF as the coordinating centre); and the University of Kara, Togo.

Speaking at the DAAD-TONI, project, Salami, who was the Team Lead, noted that three students of the University of Kara would also be part of the Frankfurt internship while similar exchanges were also scheduled for the future.

Salami who is currently the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Lagos State, said, “The main focus of this project is capacity building for sustainable development through north-south and south-south collaboration among higher institutions of learning in Africa and Europe. Since the inception of this project in April/May 2023, there has been a series of activities such as north-south and south-south discussions, curriculum development, and academic exchanges. Noteworthy is a three-day kick-off workshop at the University of Kara, Togo in May 2023 and an internship by German students in Togo and Nigeria in October/November 2023.

“Later this year, three students each from Tech-U and Kara will undertake a two-month internship in Germany, and in 2025. There will be an opportunity for six students of Tech-U to undertake a four-week visit to Kara while six students from Kara will also come to Tech-U for a duration of one month.”

Salami stressed that the project, being a tripartite partnership, aimed at synergising knowledge and experiences to address specific SDGs.

He acknowledged the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany; German Academic Exchange Service, as well as Togo and Nigeria SDG partnerships 2023-2026 for the support provided for the project and for choosing to hold the 2024 DAAD-TONI project at Tech-U.

He also appreciated the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Adesola Ajayi, and the management of First Technical University for the support provided to host the programme.

Lead from Goethe, Prof. Jurgen Runge, also spoke on the significance of the project. According to him, all the three universities involved, though comparatively young, are connected by the need to build capacity in sustainable development.

While acknowledging the cultural intrigue the project had to navigate since it straddled the three major languages of German, English, and French, Runge said the DAAD-TONI Project was a challenging one and expressed the hope that it would get more funding from other institutions.

The Lead from the University of Kara, Prof. Kankoenandja Laidja, thanked Salami for the role he played in making the project a reality.

He emphasised that it would deepen capacity building in sustainable development and environmental concerns.

The host VC, Prof. Adesola Ajayi, expressed delight at the promise the project had for Tech-U and the two other universities involved, saying opportunities had continued to open up for the Institute of Sustainable Development at Tech-U. He added that the vision that gave birth to it predated 2019 when it came on stream.

He, thus, thanked Salami and Runge for taking the workshop to Tech-U.

 Ajayi, however, called on academics to build partnerships across disciplines. He said the interplay of languages; German, English, and French at the event indicated that everyone should learn more languages.

“I understand German because I studied in Germany. I am learning French now. That should be the spirit,” he said.