Mathematics at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.

By Tunde Tajudeen Yusuf
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Mathematics as a discipline, as perceived by majority of people including Nigerians, requires talent and/or interest in the field. Although, either of these requirements have to be complemented with diligence in order to excel in the field. Unfortunately in Nigeria, many people who ended up having a first degree in Mathematics never wanted to but did so as a last resort. For a few among these people who are gifted in Mathematics, they eventually embrace Mathematics and do well. Some of them even go ahead to have Masters’ and Doctoral degrees in Mathematics while some good number of them deviate into Computer science, Insurance and Actuarial science, Accounting , Economics, management, etc. These Mathematics graduates, more often than not, get to the peak of their careers in their chosen profession and remain good ambassadors of Mathematics in the Academics and Industries.

On the other hand, for those categories of people who studied Mathematics without interest or talent in the field, most of them end up with poor classes of degrees. They either deviate to other fields that have little or nothing to do with Mathematics, work in government ministries, or teach in primary or secondary schools. Since these constitute the majority of the people with first degrees in Mathematics, the implication is that there will be inadequate numbers of quality man power to teach Mathematics at different levels of our educational system. Knowing well the central role Mathematics knowledge and reasoning plays in the comprehension of physical sciences and engineering, the adverse effect of the inadequate quality of man power for Mathematics education cannot be over emphasized. This is possibly one of the reasons for the low level of scientific and technological developments in Nigeria. The situation is made even worse by the movement of high quality Mathematics graduates into industry whenever the opportunity opens. This is unconnected to the fact that for Mathematics graduates who teach and/or carry out research in Mathematics, remuneration is not commensurate with the complexity of learning Mathematics and huge effort needed in understanding it as is the case with medical, engineering and law graduates.

Currently, there are a series of efforts towards improving the Mathematics degree graduates in the country. For instance, the Nigerian Mathematics Society (NMS) is driving the move to ensure that Mathematics graduates are well remunerated in their various places of work. Although this has not yielded the desire result for now, there is an indication that this will be fruitful if the effort persists. Also, the establishment of the National Mathematical Centre in Abuja is to help enhance the quality of Mathematics and related discipline education in Nigeria. This step by the Nigerian Government is a step in the right direction. It is the wish of the entire Mathematics community that the centre will be of maximal benefit to Mathematics in Nigeria; synergies with the NMS and other international Mathematical bodies to reposition Mathematics in Nigeria to an enviable status where individuals who carry out research and study in Mathematics will continue to be fulfilled doing so and be well remunerated for their effort. In addition, the exposure of Nigerian Mathematics teachers and lecturers to international workshops and conferences (with substantial financial support) which will keep them abreast of research developments and trends in the various field of mathematics, and will also be of great help to the Mathematics profession in Nigeria.


Dr. Tunde Tajudeen Yusuf away from his desk.

My university, Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), is a top ranking University of technology in Nigeria. It was established in 1981. Presently, it has six different schools and over thirty-five academic departments. Also, the university has over fifteen thousand students, both undergraduate and post graduate.

Tunde Tajudeen Yusuf

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