By Ignatius Ushie
The Vice-Chancellor, Federal University of Transportation (FUTD), Daura, Hon. Prof. Umar Adam Katsayal, mni, alongside the University’s Director of Academic Planning and Monitoring, Prof. Abubakar Ahmed, were amongst the hundreds of delegates who attended the 3rd Africa Education Summit that took place at Elephant Hills Hotel, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.
In a statement made available to Transport Day in Abuja, it was noted that the event was held at the iconic Victoria Falls.
The summit was organised by the Global Skills Hub, United Kingdom and the Africa Education Stakeholders in partnership with the government of Zimbabwe and supported by the Lion Outreach International.
The summit which commenced on Thursday, 3rd April, 2025 was declared opened by the Zimbabwen President and Head of State and Government of Zimbabwe, His Excellency, Cmrd. Dr. Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa and featured dynamic seasoned educators, captains of institutions, policymakers, prossionals and NGOs, led by globally renowned speakers on sub- theme, including the Vice-Chancellor, Federal University of Transportation, Daura.
The approach of this year’s summit was themed “Translating our Educational Advancement to Continental Development: A Strategic Approach.”
The summit is expected to serve as a platform for knowledge sharing, strategic partnerships, and a united effort to advance educational excellence across Africa.
The Zimbabwen President, in his Keynote Address called on delegates to centre the discussion on innovation and promote articulated ideas that would move Africa by African themselves.
According to him, “The Summit must proffer solutions that will enable developmental progress across the African continent by African and further reshape our educational system to harness our youth for the betterment of Africa”, he said.
On his part, as the pioneer Vice-Chancellor of the first University of Transportation in Nigeria and Africa, Hon. Prof. Umar Adam Katsayal, mni had since started making efforts to increase the visibility of the young University among African countries and beyond, thereby providing equal opportunities for all and sundry to study at the University.
During his presentation at the event, he used the opportunity to showcase the specialized nature of the University and the courses the University offers being the first of its kind in Africa so that African countries could be made aware of the opportunities that are provided by the University to their own advantages.
It could be recalled that the Vice-Chancellor had in December, 2023 attended a Russia – Africa summit in Russia where a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on the Establishment of Public Professional Association of Technical Universities in which he played a very significant role.
The VC had also in the same December, 2023, attended the first International Workshop and Study Tour at Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China in June, 2024, attended an International Science Popularization Roundtable Discussion where 17 developing countries and leaders from seven Chinese academic associations were represented.
