By Media360Impact
The University of Abuja and the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening collaboration on climate research, innovation, and weather services through the Smart Climate Project.
The renewed partnership was highlighted during a courtesy visit by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Prof. Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, and members of the university’s management team to the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of NiMet, Prof. Charles Anosike.
Prof. Fawehinmi said the visit, made on behalf of the University’s Governing Council under the leadership of Distinguished Senator Dr. Olanrewaju Tejuoso, was aimed at advancing discussions on the Smart Climate Project and exploring other areas of mutual interest.
According to him, both institutions are seeking to expand collaboration in joint research, the deployment of remote sensors, Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies, weather stations, climate data utilisation, academic-industry partnerships, and knowledge exchange.
Welcoming the delegation, Prof. Anosike congratulated Prof. Fawehinmi on his appointment as the substantive Vice-Chancellor and described the University of Abuja now Yakubu Gowon University as NiMet’s closest academic partner.
He revealed that more than 60 percent of NiMet interns are students from the university and recalled the agency’s previous support in establishing the institution’s weather station.
Prof. Anosike stressed the importance of maintaining NiMet-supported weather stations across universities to ensure they remain functional for teaching, research, weather monitoring, and climate services.
He also pledged that NiMet would establish a new weather station at the university to further enhance climate research and practical learning.
Both institutions agreed to work towards making climate information more accessible and useful to students, researchers, farmers, policymakers, urban planners, and local communities through the Smart Climate Project.
As part of the agreement, NiMet and the University of Abuja constituted a joint technical team that will identify priority areas for collaboration and oversee the implementation of the partnership.
