Nigeria’s Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio would on Saturday February 8, 2025 inaugurate Amadeus University, the sixth private ivory tower in Abia State, located at Amizi, Ikwuano Local Government.
Akpabio is expected to formally usher in the birth of the new private University along with other dignitaries including the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, officials of National Universities Commission(NUC), Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB).
Vice-chancellor of Amadeus, Professor Samuel Nzotta made this known yesterday at a press conference held at the institution, saying that the inauguration would coincide the matriculation of the pioneer students.
He also said that Vice-chancellors of Universities in the South East zone would be on hand to witness the birth of the new citadel of learning.
“At this maiden matriculation ceremony, 40 students who were admitted into the various approved programmes of the University during the 2024/2025 academic session shall formally be admitted into the University,” he said.
He described Amadeus University as “a world class, digital University where research, innovation and a culture of excellence are emphasized”.
To this end, the VC stated that Amadeus has prioritized research as an important pillar of its academic activities right from the onset, adding that the founder/proprietor of the University, Dr Godwin Nwabunka has provided an initial research fund of N10 million.
In addition, the managemnnt, according to him, also put in place various strategies to attract additional research grants from international funding agencies and corporate bodies, among others.
Nwabunka, who is also the Board of Trustees(BoT) Chairman of the Grooming Centre, Lagos, has set up scholarship schemes for indigent students of the University and staff members of Grooming Centre who gained admission into the University.
Meanwhile, the Amadeus VC has lent his voice to the call on the federal government to review the interventions of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) to include private universities in its scope of funding.
He said: “To ensure that private Universities in Nigeria fulfill their vision and mission, I call on the Federal Government of Nigeria to review the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) mode of operations to enable the intervention body provide research grants to scholars in private Universities.
“This will enhance staff development in private Universities and ensure holistic research activities in the country generally. This shall be salutary to economic development of Nigeria”.
On the location of the Amadeus University in a rural settiing, Professor Nzotta justified the choice, saying that it “provides the relaxed ambience needed for educational pursuits and scholarship”
“The University has been positioned to produce graduates who are knowledgeable, highly skilled and globally competitive. It is expected that at the end of the day, our graduates shall be job creators and not job seekers,” he said.
Nzotta said that Amadeus University was conceived Nwabunka “following the realization that education is a major tool for empowerment and for driving people out of poverty”.
He also added that the proprietor’s desire to contribute to the educational development of Nigeria at the tertiary level contributed in firing his zeal to establish Amadeus University.
The VC noted that the philosophy of the institution include producing “self-reliant, nationally relevant and globally competitive graduates fit for the 21st century digital world”.