joshuaWe’ll partner relevant bodies to promote knowledge sharing – FULafia VC
From Esther Akaa, Lafia
The Vice Chancellor ( VC) of Federal University of Lafia ( FULafia), Prof Shehu Abdul Rahman says the university would continue to partner institutional bodies aimed at producing and sharing knowledge.
Prof Abdul Rahman stated this while declaring open the 2024 Annual General Meeting/ Conference of the Association of Philosophy Professions of Nigeria (APPON) held at the university on Thursday.
The VC, represented by the deputy Vice Chancellor, Prof Ali Shugaba said the institution had place high premium on teaching, research and community services, and would continue to collaborate with associations and individuals to promote knowledge and skills development.
He commended APPON for choosing the university to hold its conference with the theme : “Philosophy, Artificial Intelligence and Cultural Impacts”, which he said was timely due to emerging technologies such as the development of Artificial Intelligence ( AI), noting that the theme of the conference would address the challenges associated with its use.
” We must promote continuous and robust culture of organising conferences, encouraging,supporting and sponsoring both teaching and non-teaching staff to conferences because the driver of any society depends on how much we carry out research in the best ways.
” It is our pleasure that APPON does not want to be left behind in this area of technology specifically in the area of AI.
” We have recently created a Directorate of AI with a Director that has been appointed to kick-start it because that is the only way we can showcase the innovative aspect of our values of integrity and excellence,” the VC said.
He, therefore charged participants to embrace AI its negative challenges, saying that the inputs at the conference would provide ways of addressing some of its effects for the progress of the society and country at large.
On his part the Convener who doubles as the National President of APPON, Prof Alloy Ihuah said the conference was aimed at looking out the intersection between philosophy and the use of AI as well as its implications to human existence.
“Today, more and more human beings are transforming into acting in the manner that the mind has been transferred.One can give birth without marrying, or even without sex. People are marrying robots in which the human mind has been transferred.
“We want to look at those implications and see the future of man. Philosophers are thinkers and therefore we are interrogating all issues of the right, the wrong, the good, the bad and the ugly,” he said.
He said that APPON as an academic association, would continue to advance learning, to improve and to teach the younger generation is rudiments of research and publication of both books and journal articles for the purpose of promotion and advancing the course of philosophical studies in Nigeria and beyond.
Also speaking, President, National Association of Artificial Intelligence Practitioners (NAAIP), Prof Eyitope Ogunbodede, represented by the Director of Cultural Studies at FULafia, Prof Zara Kwaghe congratulated APPON for advancing philosophical inquiry between philosophy and emerging technologies like AI.
Prof Ogunbodede noted that philosophy provides the ethical frameworks and critical thinking necessary to navigate the complexities of AI, even as she said it challenges researchers to ask profound questions about consciousness, responsibility and the societal dialogue between philosophy and AI.
She therefore encouraged participants to engage actively in the discussions, share ideas, and explore collaborative opportunities that arise from the gathering.
Lead paper presenter at the conference, Prof Abiodun Aibinu who is the VC, Summit University, Offa ,Kwarra State, who spoke on the topic ” The philosophical and Impact of AI in Today’s Culture”, said educational systems need to adapt and prepare individuals for an AI dominated job market.
Prof Aibinu represented by Dr Taliha Folorunso , Head of Department ( HOD) Mechatronics Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Minna, called on policymakers, ethicists and technologists to collaborate and create ethics frameworks guiding AI development and deployment in the country.
Earlier, the HOD of Philosophy Department at FULafia, Prof Paul Haaga while welcoming participants to the programme, thanked the VC of FULafia, Abdul Rahman for all his support and for accepting to host the conference.
He also appreciated the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Prof. Muhammed Aliyu for all his support and acknowledged the various partnerships, collaborations of groups, organisations, associations and individuals who provided various forms of supports and contributions towards the success of the event.
Nigerian Post reports that the association conferred a honorary award of fellow of APPON on VC of FULafia,Prof Abdul Rahman for his contributions to the advancement of the discipline of Philosophy in Nigeria.
Others including the HOD of Philosophy , FULafia , Prof Paul Haaga were awarded fellow of APPON for their contributions to the development of the association.l
