Collins Onyenze, the President of India Universities Alumni Association, Nigeria, recalls his experiences at Panjab University, India and the advantages of transfer of technology from India.WHAT led to the founding of India Universities Alumni Association in Nigeria'The Association was founded to build a stronger relationship between India and Nigeria, to take care of issues that concern Nigerians who studied in India in different institutions. That is to say to bring all the people that studied in India together.Our membership has grown to over 10,000 in Nigeria. We want to bring the Indian model of development to Nigeria. We also hope to form a relationship between Nigeria and India to make Nigeria a great country. So many people graduated in the 70s. I graduated in 1985. The association started in 1982.When did you set up the association'There was a time during the Shehu Shagari government. when the government came up with a policy that the degrees from Indian universities are inferior to degrees from universities in Nigeria. Meanwhile, we have many professors and lecturers in the Nigerian universities from India. The government later reverted to the status quo.What led to your going to India to study 'Those who went to India in the eighties, went there because of shortage of universities in Nigeria. People who are going to study in India today, are going to learn about their technological advancement. There are so many computer courses that are not in the curriculum of the Nigerian universities that are available in India universities. The Silicon Valley, anchor Indian computer software manufacturing. India is the highest seller of computer software technology in the world.We discovered that most of the Nigerian Universities are still in the analog age, India is far ahead in computer technology.India now exports her technological experts even to Nigeria. We have many Indians operating in Nigerian banks and airlines. This is because Indians have gone far in the area of modern technology. This is a dynamic world and the only thing that is permanent in the world is change.What is the ratio of people that are going to India to study'Those who went to study in India in the eighties went there for general studies, including medicine, and engineering, economics and all that. But people are now going there mostly for computer programmes.Why is it that the standard of education in India is higher than that of Nigeria'There is an atmosphere conducive to learning in India, than we have in Nigeria. Nigerians who are products of Indian universities are doing well in different disciplines. Today we have Nigerians who studied in India in high places, ministers, commissioners, members of National Assembly, etc.The current House of Representatives chairman in the on banking and finance, Ogbuefi Ozomgbachi, studied in India. We have the man we can callthe Bill Gates of Nigeria in computer, Zinus Computers, Chief Leostan Ekeh. They all studied in India and have proven that graduates from India are worth their salt.Is it possible to actually transfer technology from one part of the world to another'Let me give you a picture. TATA is an automobile company founded as an offshoot of Mercedes in Germany. Mazda-Swaraj is the Japanese technology transfer (from Mazda) to India.India added value to the technologies they transferred from other places. We were in India when Maruti Suzuki was brought to India, today it is called Maruti. The military use it in Nigeria and they use it in every other parts of the world. Today NIIT, and APTEC are India-based computer companies in Nigeria, they are teaching our children how to use computers. In addition to this, they give what is called civil servant service training to our civil servants. They do it free of charge every year.India is known in steel business. I think the policy of government should encourage the transfer of technology from India to Nigeria, so that we can move forward. We have the TATA, the Billa and so many other companies that are into steel production in India from whom we can learn a lot.What are the advantages of transferring technology from India'The western world, takes Nigeria as a 'peripheral' state. They want us to remain like that.But India through non-aligned nations and the Commonwealth, sees Nigeria as a peer and is ready to assist Nigeria to develop. Again, Indian technology is easier to imbibe.For so many years that we had Volkswagen from Germany in Nigeria, they did not produce a single spare part. When we had Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) from France, they never produced anything. We had no relationship with them. But we had closer ties with India, than the western world. And the West will want us to continue to import its technology without impacting the know-how on us.Our automobile industries can develop easily with technology from India. That is why the Lagos State Government has seen the need to import vehicles from India. It is easy to maintain. We have the experience in the eighties when they brought Saviem (called Pack and Ride) from Sweden; the vehicle did not last more than two years. That was because the technology was not easy for our technicians to repair. Two, it is easier and cheaper to transfer technology from India. Today, everybody is going to India for medical treatment, it is better to transfer the technology here.We can bring in Indian expatriates. They are cheaper and more committed than the western expatriates. They see us as peers not as inferior or superior, no master and servant relationship.Apart from India, from which other country do you think that we can transfer technology from'The Asian Tigers, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam they have gone far. China is where everybody is now importing their products. Their technologies are easier to adapt to our system. Before American electronics can work in Nigeria, you have to use a step down. We have a relationship with countries like Malaysia, who came here in the sixties and took our palm seeds, and today they are the largest exporter of palm oil in the world. We can also get agricultural technology from Thailand.In the area of electricity, can we also borrow a leaf from India'In India, there is no power outage. They harness all resources at their disposal effectively. Throughout the time that I was in India, there was nothing like power failure. The problem in the energy sector is due to the fact that we are not getting our technology from countries like India, with technology that will be easier for our engineers to manage.Are there other things that we have in common with India'India is the biggest democracy in the world. We can copy how they have been able to do that. As at independence, India has 365 independent states. They came together as a nation. Here we also have more than two hundred ethnic groups. One state in India out of the 21 as at when I was there, Utter Pradex (UP) is bigger than Nigeria in population and landmass.What about the agricultural development of India'That is another area, we can leverage on. We have states like Rajestan, they have the same climatic condition with us. In the eighties, we had what is called 'wonders in the desert' when Indira Gandi converted desert to arable land. Today, India is the leading producer of rice. Despite their high population, they still sell rice to some selected countries. With all the problem they have with Pakistan, China they have stood their ground.What are the policies you think that the government should put in place to make Nigeria a place like India'India started with the encouragement of small and medium scale industries. They provide cheap loans for their industries to develop. They also have what they called collective production centre. Where they showcase their products in the same market. Be it in automobile, medicals or textile industries. The textile industries in Nigeria were once managed by Indians while they were here. But the problem of energy has taken them away. Everybody is now going to India to bring textile materials into the country and it is not good for our economy.What is the effect of Indian population on their economy'Apart from affecting the national income, it affects individual development. Because when you have eight children it will affect your development as an individual. India has started addressing that, but not as firm as the Chinese, who made a legislation of one-man-one-child. But India is still addressing it based on campaigns concerning how population affects the people. The practice is for them to have only two children. Indira Ghandi is the first prime minister of India, he had only two children, Raiv and Sanjay. If you check from 40 to 50s, the intellectuals kept faith with such a small nuclear family.The only problem they have is a cultural one. If you have two girls, you must insist on having a boy, because of the cultural impediment. A woman pays the dowry of a man.Are you advocating such a campaign in Nigeria'One state in India is having a population and landmass of Nigeria. That is why India is called: Asian subcontinent. But they still have to do something about their population, the same goes to Nigeria. We need to reduce our family size. It helps to reduce infant and maternal mortality. Most cities in Nigeria are overpopulated, because more people are coming to the cities, but if the government can develop the rural areas, it will stem the migration of people to the cities.
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