‘Nigeria could face more social problems if the economy keeps sliding’
Margee Ensign, president of the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola, Adamawa State, in this interview with ZEBULON AGOMUO, Editor, advised government to borrow a leaf from countries that had been in recession and how they got out of it. According to Ensign, conscious efforts must be made to create employments and wealth through agriculture, emphasizing that free education is also key to raising a strong nation. She also spoke on other issues. Excerpts:
You witnessed the insurgency in its fiercest form, because it was heavy in Yola some time ago; with your involvement in the Adamawa Peace Initiative, what is your impression about your host community?
I have always found the community to be one of the most generous and welcoming place I ever lived. From the day I got off the plane that brought me here some years ago, I felt so welcomed. I am not surprised that the community found a way of staying together during the insurgency. I am not surprised that members of the Adamawa Peace Initiative were the most visionary and generous people I ever met. I see the future of Adamawa in Nigeria being very bright. What is missing is that basic education, because if you can’t read, you can’t participate much in the society. I believe that once people can read and acquire the necessary knowledge they can then contribute and participate actively in their environment. I will be sad when I leave here because the people have been so wonderful and welcoming.
The Founder commended your exploits in AUN; your Midas touch so to speak. What is the secret of your success in the university?
The secret is working with people; people of like-minds. If there’s anything that brings success it is about working in the midst of nice people. We have a wonderful team in AUN and the vision of His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar for a development university; and the wonderful charge he gave us. Those who are here believe and run with that vision; that’s what makes the success. It’s just about having the right people who have the right attitude that is what makes a whole difference.
The Law School has taken off. You spoke very passionately about it before the inauguration. Having achieved that, what’s the next thing on the card?
Quickly, let me first talk about the Law school. The Founder met with the 50 pioneer law students and it was an opportunity for them; they had really good questions. It made me realise how important justices are in our society. It was really heart-warming to hear their questions and of course, he attended to their questions. He really engaged with them for about 45 minutes. On the next programme on the card, we now have our Board’s approval to begin the process of accreditation for Engineering programmes. Next year, expect our engineering programmes to come on stream. Already, we have software engineering; we will add telecommunications, electronics, etc. what we want everyone to know is that we have just entered our largest class in four years; the challenging semesters are there. We didn’t have large classes before, but I hope we are good with it. What is happening is that we set out to solve problems as a development university and many people are buying into our vision. We are teaching literacy, ICT, entrepreneurship and we are solving problems. The country is beginning to see our graduates entering into positions where they will be taking leadership positions. I have heard parents telling me they want to send their children because they want where they would be taught how to solve problems. It is really heart-warming to hear from Nigerian parents ‘that is why we are sending them.’ I think the future is really bright for AUN with improved security, the programmes being added and others.
You said you would be sad when it is time for you to leave AUN; but the Founder said there are three women leaders in AUN that have performed so wonderfully and that he won’t let them go; how do you reconcile these two statements?
Well, I may be a very strong woman and you know that I have family in the US; I have been here quite a long time, for almost seven years. One day, I will go home to my family. To be very candid with you, I am extremely worried about what is happening in my country right now. I am seriously worried about the outcome of the election, the extreme things they said about the minorities. I think it will not be too long for me to go home to see if I can do something there; because I have great worries about the future of America.
I had sessions with different schools; Business & Entrepreneur, ITC and a group ‘I am Believer’; I discovered from our interactions that AUN is just in a class of its own. What message do you have for universities in the country that are not there yet?
I have said this over and again, AUN’s success would not have been possible without the Founder. What the Founder put in place in AUN, most universities don’t have that. My message is youth technology- exposing the youth to use technology to their advantage. This is because we live in a different time. In a country like yours; doubling every 26 years, thank God we have technology because there’s no other choice. Every university, secondary school and primary school should figure out how it could leverage on online technology for effective teaching and learning. Such schools should figure out how to make use of other people’s curriculum across the world that is free. We have a programme called LOAF (Library on a Loan). At the last meeting of the Vice Chancellors from private universities with the new executive secretary of National Universities Commission (NUC), we offered everyone a LOAF and I am hearing every day from my fellow vice chancellors that they need this and that, and we put them in packages and sent across; that can be our contribution. There are so many free sources of information and learning sites online. The price of these things is coming down. The solution to our problem is to think outside the box. So, Nigerians must move fast. Kids on the street need a smartphone. Whatever they are doing, they are reading a book alongside. Education is the foundation of any society; Nigeria can be great using technology to solve its problems.
Nigeria is in recession; if you were to advise the government on how to tackle it, what would be your advice?
I would look at how other countries had handled both rapid population growth and recession and I would invest as quickly as I could in a sector that could employ the most people and give income and that is agriculture. If you look at the China example, you can adopt it using agriculture and manufacturing. People can be employed through these means. There should be massive free education; China did it and you guys can do it quite easier and cheaper. Free health care; if you improve the health care system to ensure that people enjoy good health to work, you will be on your way out of recession. Those three things- people earning stable income; have their food and making agriculture the bread basket of the economy, then before long you will be exporting. When people have income, they have education and they are healthy- that’s how the tigers became tigers. Look at Rwanda, a few years ago, they were devastated, but they are the fastest growing economy today. Where was the climate change meeting held? In Kigali, the cleanest city in Africa. So, you don’t have to reinvent everything, just look around, the solution is not far. The leadership of this country should be bringing in the smartest people in the country and from the continent and the world at large to say ‘help us solve this problem’, because you were sleeping and there’s no excuse now. I see the desperation in Yola, and you see it more in Lagos and Abuja. If the economy keeps sliding you face more social problems.
The AUN community was very elated when the 21 girls were recently released by Boko Haram. As your manner is, is the institution planning to take some in?
First of all, you know we have 24 here; six fully enrolled in the university and 18 in our foundation programme. To put together the foundation was not cheap, but for the Founder’s help and a donor from the United States. We were happy when the last set regained their freedom, you saw my tweet. I understand they are under the care of the government. I do not know who they are talking to and I know quite sure government is doing its best to help the young women go on with their lives. They deserve whatever this country can do for them but not just them, thousands of children all over the place. We need a massive programme to put these children back in school. I expect this government to step up and say ‘the children are the future of the society; we are going to do everything to educate them, feed them with the resources available to us.’ There is no other way to do it than to look at how other countries have done it.
ZEBULON AGOMUO