LASU, UNDP collaborate to unveil ‘LASU Innovation Hub’

The Lagos State University (LASU) in partnership with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has officially launched the LASU Innovation Hub, designed as an incubation centre for ideas.

The launch ceremony had top government officials, royal fathers, captains of industry, stakeholders and eminent Nigerians gathered at the Centre of Excellence for Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Awori House), Ojo campus of the University, where young innovators shared ideas, displayed prototypes, and engaged with potential investors.

Speaking at the event, the Deputy Governor, Lagos State, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, represented by the Executive Secretary, Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB), Ms Moronke Azeez, praised the UNDP for its strategic support and partnership with Lagos State University.

The Deputy Governor commended the University Management for its openness to innovation and dedication to academic excellence, appreciating the Orelope family for their dedication to education.

He advocated “The launch of the innovation hub signifies a shift in mindset, seeing problems as opportunities, young people as assets and universities as launch pads for national renewal”.

In her remarks, the donor of the facility and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, expressed pride at having the innovation hub domiciled in the institution, asserting that the hub is fully equipped to provide a dynamic environment for innovation, enterprise, and capacity development under the strategic management of the UNDP.

According to her, “the hub is a launchpad for ideas, training ground, a safe space for creativity, experimentation and collaboration which will serve multiple purposes. This innovation hub will also serve as an incubator for startups and social enterprises, offering mentorship, business modelling, tips, training and access to funding opportunities and sustainable development”.

However, the Resident Representative of the UNDP, Nigeria, Ms Elsie Attafuah, noted that the launching of the hub is a bold step in transforming public universities into engines of national growth, enterprise, and real-world solutions.

Also speaking at the event, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ibiyemi Ibilola Olatunji-Bello, stated that the launch of the Lagos State University Innovation Hub is a bold step forward in the collective pursuit of academic excellence, creativity, and sustainable development.