Emma Okonji
The University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) has established the first full-fledged university embedded technology hub in West Africa called ‘Roar Nigeria Hub’.
The hub is a testament to the burning desire of the Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Benjamin Chukwuma Ozumba, to create a smart university.
Located at the Nsukka campus, the private sector driven initiative will serve the institution with a student population of nearly 40,000 and other institutions of higher learning.
The Hub is on a mission to produce the next generation of entrepreneurs by providing an enabling environment, support systems and relevant skills to succeed with technology entrepreneurship, across the South East region while impacting the IT ecosystem in Nigeria.
Confirming the establishment of the Hub, the University Advancement Centre Executive, Emem Seudieu, said Roar Nigeria Hub is a community that provides professional support to technology enabled startups, researchers, entrepreneurs and SME’s.
“Their programmes are designed to develop a new generation of innovators and creators that will provide local technology based solutions with a global perspective. The Hub is destined to be a hotbed of ideas, invention and market induced solutions created with the concept of a triple helix; an interaction between academia, industry and government,” Seudieu said.
Doors to the Hub opened late 2016 with the first pitching event held on January 26th, 2017 titled Tech & UNN.
At the event, the Vice Chancellor, shared his dream of creating an Ecosystem that will fuel unprecedented technology growth in Africa.
The official hub launch was held on February 6, 2017 which coincided with a Pitchaton by teams from the school community and hosted by the Vice Chancellor.
“We shall be having a public introduction of the Roar Nigeria on April 26th, 2017 at the hub in University of Nigeria Nsukka campus.The hub will create employment by increasing local content in information, communication and technology sector and establish the triple helix concept by improving collaboration between the academia, industry and government”, Seudieu said.
According to her, the University Advancement Centre sees it as a clarion call to all University of Nigeria Alumni and other friends of the university to participate in nation building.
She expressed confidence that the hub would create employment by increasing local content in information and communications technology (ICT).
