Ambrose Alli University (AAU),Alumni Association, FCT apter ,has urged the formation of a National Alumni Development Framework as a coordinated platform for alumni associations across Nigeria.
By Angela Atabo
Ambrose Alli University (AAU),Alumni Association, FCT apter ,has urged the formation of a National Alumni Development Framework as a coordinated platform for alumni associations across Nigeria.
Justice Godwin Iheabunike, Judge, FCT High Court, Abuja, who spoke on Sunday in Abuja at the AAU Annual Lecture Series in Honour of National Executive Council Members, said the framework would help to share knowledge.
Iheabunike said it would also aggregate funding, influence policy, and deliver structured interventions.
He said, “This could take the form of an umbrella body recognised by the Federal Government and tied to national development goals.
“The Ambrose Alli University Alumni Association can lead the way by convening a National Alumni Summit to explore this idea.”
According to him, alumni associations are not mere relics of academic nostalgia but are vehicles of national progress as they possess the intellectual, financial.
Iheabunike also described them as moral capitals that would help in shaping destinies, not just of universities, but of nations.
“Let us recommit ourselves to the values of service, knowledge, integrity, and unity.
“Let us move beyond annual gatherings and begin to implement strategic interventions that change lives, empower institutions, and build a stronger, more inclusive Nigeria.
“The future of nation building is not just in government houses or multinational boardrooms.
“It is in our hands. As alumni, we are not just witnesses to history; we are called to be architects of the future,”he said
Iheabunike said the Nigerian economy was facing a youths unemployment crisis, opining that alumni associations had the unique capacity to act as economic catalysts by promoting entrepreneurship among graduates and undergraduates.
He said through business incubation programmes, venture capital linkages, and mentorship, alumni could help create the next generation of job creators rather than job seekers.
Iheabunike added, “Ambrose Alli University Alumni Association, for example, could consider establishing an enterprise fund to support graduate-led businesses, thereby contributing directly to the productive sector of the economy.”