Osun State University (UNIOSUN) and Nigeria Machine Tools Limited (NMTL) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at enhancing practical engineering education and building national technical capacity.
The agreement was formalised during a visit by the NMTL management team to the university, according to a statement issued on Friday in Osogbo by Mr. Ademola Adesoji, UNIOSUN’s Public Relations Officer.
The MoU includes plans to establish a state-of-the-art Engineering Skills Development Centre (ESDC) in Osogbo. The facility will provide hands-on technical training and entrepreneurship development for students of mechatronics and related disciplines, as well as for trainees from across the country.
Describing the agreement as “a milestone in bridging the gap between academic theory and industrial practice,” UNIOSUN Vice-Chancellor, Professor Odunayo Adebooye, highlighted the crucial role of academia-industry collaboration in tackling youth unemployment and driving national productivity.
Mr. Alexander Igweze, Executive Manager of NMTL, commended the university’s commitment to aligning academic training with industry demands. He noted that a prior visit by UNIOSUN representatives to NMTL helped assess the company’s infrastructure and led to the formation of a joint committee that drafted the agreement.
Igweze said the centre would serve as a hub for technical and entrepreneurial training, accessible to students, professionals, and the general public. The initiative, he added, is designed to improve employability, encourage self-reliance, and support Nigeria’s broader economic transformation through the development of a skilled workforce.
“This partnership demonstrates our joint commitment to producing graduates who are not only academically sound but also practically capable and globally competitive,” Igweze stated.
He also noted that the collaboration further underscores UNIOSUN’s growing reputation in practical engineering education and reaffirms NMTL’s role in national industrial development.
Stakeholders expressed optimism that the initiative would serve as a model for effective university-industry partnerships across Nigeria.
