The Ogun State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to fostering an enabling environment where knowledge, research and innovation can thrive for the benefit of the society, as education and human capital development remain central pillars of government policy.

The Head of Service, Mr. Olanrewaju Saka, stated this when he delivered a goodwill message at the 2nd Public Lecture and Maiden Postgraduate School Discourse, with the theme "Consolidating Postgraduate Education in Nigerian Universities" put together by the Chrisland University, Abeokuta.

According to him, the commitment is reflected in the Administration's support for educational advancement, institutional development and evidence-based decision-making across all sectors and added that the government appreciates the value of intellectual inquiry in shaping public policy and service delivery.

The Head of Service said the Prince Dapo Abiodun-led administration has continued to invest strategically in education, capacity development, research and innovation as essential drivers of socio-economic transformation, and added that premium has also been placed on productive partnerships with institutions of higher learning, as their indispensable role in nurturing the intellectual capacity required for sustainable growth and development is highly recognized.

"We firmly believe that robust postgraduate education and research serve as catalysts for sustainable development, policy innovation and evidence-based governance, which are essential for addressing contemporary challenges and advancing societal progress", Mr. Saka submitted.

He commended the University, the Vice Chancellor and all stakeholders for their commitment to academic excellence and human capital development as such initiative strengthens the educational institutions and prepare future leaders for the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly evolving world.

Delivering the lecture, the Guest Speaker, a former Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Prof. Idowu Olayinka said postgraduate education goes beyond the acquisition of higher degrees by students, as it is meant to contribute towards innovation and national development in diverse fields of human endeavour.

He noted that Postgraduate education as the apex of higher education should be able to influence the immediate academic environment and the community at large, and identified bottlenecks affecting postgraduate education in Nigeria to include low funding, brain drain as 60 percent of Nigerian Ph.D holders stay abroad, lack of supervisors, laboratories, and library resources, and about only 15 percent of undergraduates proceed to postgraduate programmes.

Professor Olayinka submitted that if Nigeria's Vision 2050 and SDGs are to be met, more postgraduate enrolment focused on STEM, agriculture, health, and policy must be encouraged in order to turn postgraduate education's population from a demographic burden into demographic dividends.

The former Vice-Chancellor who noted that institutions must develop their research plans and promote the transfer of technology from institutions to industry, lauded the Chrisland University for laying a good foundation and urged it to keep the tab on quality as it took many institutions decades after their establishments before floating postgraduate studies.

Earlier in a welcome address, the Vice-Chancellor, Chrisland University, Abeokuta, Professor Oyedunni Arulogun, said across the world, postgraduate education remains the backbone of knowledge creation, research excellence, technological innovation and national development.

Professor Arulogun assured that the University is committed to building academic excellence, rigorous research, innovation, interdisciplinary collaborations, ethical scholarship and global relevance.