At UB Science Expo: VC salutes contribution of Faculty of Science to growth of institution.

The Faculty of Science, according to the Vice Chancellor, has been at the centre of the growth and development of the university since its creation 30 years ago. 

The science expo, he said, was thus a communication strategy implemented by the faculty to sell itself to the public on how it trains students and the relevance of its programmes to national development. 

“The faculty has taken this expo to show how it has trained students for 30 years and its contribution through scientific innovation and technology to development,” the VC told reporters.

The exposition brought together top administrative staff and officials of the University of Buea, members of the university community as well as secondary school students from different public and private schools in the city of Buea.

The two-day expo which began Thursday 16 was anchored on the theme: "Faculty of Science: Thirty years of contribution to the transformation of the educational landscape of Cameroon and national development". 

Authorities said the theme highlighted the notable contributions to sciences, technology, innovation made by the faculty in the country’s educational landscape

In his keynote address, the Head of Department of Computer Science, Dr Denis Nkweteyim, educated the participants on the need to ensure relevance and excellence in scientific training in the era of artificial intelligence. 

Artificial intelligence, he said, provides a great opportunity for researchers and scholars to innovate and provide better solutions to the challenges facing mankind.

Other researchers throughout the two-day expo also edified their contemporaries on different scientific themes like contribution of science to the transformation of Cameroon's natural resources, climate change and the wellbeing of Cameroonians, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

Students from all of the faculty’s 49 programmes at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels showcased different achievements made by their different departments. 

The students and their lecturers mesmerised guests especially secondary school students with different innovations in different disciplines as a way of wooing them to join either of the programmes offered by the faculty.

The faculty has 49 programmes including 15 at the Bachelors, 21 for Master degree and 13 PhD. It has an academic staff strength of 159 comprising 24 Professors, 25 Associate professors, 64 Lecturers, 46 Assistant Lecturers, 14 Senior Instructors and 39 part-time teachers. 

After a visit to the different stands displayed by students, the Vice Chancellor expressed his satisfaction with the contributions of the faculty. 

“I have seen the results of scientific innovation and technology through all the stands I visited, showing how the faculty has advanced in delivering knowledge to young Cameroonians,” he stated. 

Speaking to the press, the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Roland Ndip Ndip, said the faculty has grown over the years to become a reference with its contributions to national development. 

“With climate change we are more susceptible to diseases prior to what we had, so the clinical diagnostics laboratory together with the other labs like the UB Centre for Drug Discovery and the Emerging Infectious Disease Lab are there to ensure that the Faculty of Science continues to lead science in the nation for development,” he said.

The expo, he said, was a unique opportunity for the faculty to showcase the trainings in the scientific disciplines and the research that “we do that impacts development”.