The Vice-Chancellor of Rivers State University, Professor Isaac Zeb-Obipi, has called upon academics and students alike to cultivate a culture of “giving back” to their educational institutions to foster sustainable development.
The Vice-Chancellor made this appeal on Wednesday, 6 May, during the official commissioning ceremony of a newly installed Solar Power Plant at the Department of Logistics and Supply Chain Management. The project, described as a “transformative milestone,” was funded and donated by postgraduate students of the department to enhance research and digital learning capabilities.
The inauguration of the solar facility marks a strategic shift for the department, moving away from a reliance on the erratic national grid and the environmental costs of diesel generators.
During his keynote address, Professor Zeb-Obipi commended the postgraduate students for their selfless contribution and praised the acting Head of Department, Dr. Mac-Kingsley Ikegwuru, for providing the visionary leadership that motivated the students to embark on the project. The Vice-Chancellor further assured the Dean of the Faculty, Professor John Ohaka, that the university intended to utilise funds from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) to replicate similar solar energy solutions across other departments within the faculty.
In his welcome address, the acting Head of Department, Dr Ikegwuru, characterised the solar plant as a “living laboratory” that would provide students with practical experience in sustainable energy while securing the department’s academic operations.
He outlined the multi-faceted benefits of the project, including: Academic Continuity: Providing uninterrupted power for computer laboratories, research equipment, and evening classes. Environmental Stewardship: Aligning the university with global standards by significantly reducing its carbon footprint. Fiscal Responsibility: Drastically lowering expenditure on diesel and generator maintenance, allowing funds to be redirected toward academic materials.
“Today is not just another day of campus activities; it is a transformative milestone,” Dr Ikegwuru stated. “With this solar installation, we are guaranteed sustainable, reliable, and clean power, ensuring that our students can carry out research without interruptions.”
Responding to the gesture, the Dean of the Faculty of Administration and Management Sciences, Professor John Ohaka, expressed his gratitude to the Vice-Chancellor for his consistent support as a “worthy ambassador” of the faculty. He pledged that the faculty would ensure the facility is “judiciously used” and properly maintained to serve both current and future generations of scholars.
The event concluded with the formal commissioning of the plant by Professor Zeb-Obipi, who noted that such initiatives are essential for the university’s ambition to remain a world-class, sustainable centre of excellence. The ceremony was attended by members of the university management, deans of various faculties, Heads of Departments, and student representatives, all of whom lauded the postgraduate students’ initiative as a model for institutional support.
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