•Win laurels at Africa Varsity of Science and Tech convocation

EIGHTEEN Nigerians of the 38 pioneer graduating students of the African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja, left the convocation ground with only their gowns, hats and scrolls at the weeknd.

But their counterparts from Ghana, Cameroon and Ethiopia went home with the university’s Awards of Excellence.

At a well-attended convocation ceremony held at the university’s premises, while three Ghanaians went to the podium to receive awards as the best graduating students of their respective faculties, a Cameroonian and two Ethiopians were honoured for their outstanding academic performances.

Sandy Beidu of Ghana won the Best Graduating Student Award from the Faculty of Computer Science; Atsu Kporngo (Ghana) won the Best Student Award for Petroleum Engineering; Nelson Yaw Dzade also of Ghana, the best in Material Science and Dawit Gezahegn, Ethiopia, the best in Mathematics.

Azeb Habte, Ethiopia, the only female among the best graduating students, was rewarded for her outstanding final year project. She was in the Faculty of Petroleum Engineering.

All the 38 graduating students were awarded with Masters of Science degrees in their respective disciplines.

AUST was founded in 2002 as the first of a network of African Centres of Excellence established across the continent by the Nelson Mandela Institution.

Speaking at the convocation, former Minister of Finance and Chairman, Board of Directors of the university, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, remarked that the basic objective of the university was to educate the next generation of African scientists and technologists with the capacity to solve real African problems and provide leadership that can lead to the economic and social transformation of the continent.

Her words: “The goal is to promote a strong foundation in the fundamentals; a deep understanding of research frontiers with an interdisciplinary framework, and an orientation towards entrepreneurship and/or service that can lead to the continuous development of Africa.”