By Ikechukwu Ohaegbulem
United Nigeria Airlines Limited will this October accept the first batch of engineering students of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (NAU), Awka, for an internship in its engineering department.
This is a sequel to the signing, and exchange, of the final documents and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between United Nigeria Airlines represented by its Chairman, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo and NAU represented by its Vice Chancellor, Prof. Charles Esimone, in Abuja, Friday.
According to the agreement, United Nigeria will take in between 10 to 20 fourth-year engineering students of UNIZIK for an internship at the engineering department of United Nigeria Airlines.
The lucky students will be taken through the rudiments of aircraft engineering by a team of aircraft engineers at the company and the internship shall be for the entire duration of the second semester.
It will be recalled that the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines in October 2021, while speaking at a ceremony at the university in Awka, promised to unveil a series of plans to help the university boost human capital development for the country.
According to Prof. Okonkwo, besides the internship scholarships offer, he will also facilitate the introduction of a Russian language department at the university as well as an academic exchange programme between UNIZIK and Russian universities on the platform of the Nigeria-Russia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NRCCI), which he heads as President.
Prof. Okonkwo further promised to facilitate poultry production at the university in conjunction with his foundation, Pro-Value Humanity Foundation.
Agreements to these effects were also signed and sealed between both parties with the Director of Administration at United Nigeria, Mr. Linus Awute, and a member of the council of the university, Prof. Meshach Umenweke, in attendance.
According to the agreement, United Nigeria would provide “professional assistance to the students of the faculty of engineering of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (NAU) which will be facilitated through the use of industrial training and work experience to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of academic, administrative services and activities for the students”.
United Nigeria Airlines Limited will, at the end of each internship session, issue industrial training clearance forms to the deserving students while the university shall supervise the students as well as select deserving students deriving from their academic performance records.
