Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Salihi Magashi (rtd) has tasked the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Institute of Technology (AFIT) to upgrade its Research and Development (R&D) towards meeting the nation’s demands for locally produced military hardwares and equipment.
General Magashi told the management of the Air Force Institute led by its Commandant, Air Vice Marshal Musbau Olumide Olatunji, at the headquarters Ministry of Defence, Ship House Abuja the evolvement and deployment of renewed R&D would be a potent tool to change the narrative of Nigeria’s over-dependence on foreign technologies while maximizing local expertise in human capital development.
The Minister pledged to support the Institute in her developmental strides as it grows the national air power for self-reliance and self-sufficiency, promising to channel its needs to President Muhammadu Buhari who had earlier approved the upgrade of AFIT to a degree awarding Institution.
While challenging AFIT to remain focused in pursuing the objectives for which it was established since 1977 the Minister of Defence said he supports the provision of take-off grants like other universities.
But he however noted that the level of buy-in by the federal government to the take-off grant will be determined by the Institute’s excellent output and high performance.
AFIT was founded in 1977 with the name NAF Technical and Supply School (TSS) principally to manage aircraft and equipment bought during the Nigerian Civil War in 1967. In 1979, it was renamed Technical Training Wing. By 2000, its identity was changed to 320 Technical Training Group (320TTG).
And on March 12, 2008, the 320 TTG was formally transformed into the AFIT. And the National Universities Commission (NUC) upgraded its status to run undergraduate and postgraduate courses in 2018/2019.
Its students’ intake include personnel from Sister Services of Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, Ministries Departments Agencies (MDA’s) and friendly African countries of Benin Republic, Ghana, Niger, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe.
AFIT Commandant, AVM Olatunji, appealed for support to mitigate the school’s infrastructural deficit which he said is responsible for pruning down the number of students intakes as available facilities are already over stretched.
AVM Olatunji, who said the Institute has a population of about five thousand students and five faculties, is on the threshold of meeting the academic and infrastructural requirements of the National Universities Commission to graduate her first batch of the 300 level degree students.
