The Provost of Kogi State College of Education, Ankpa, Dr Paul Femi Fashagba, is currently in Istanbul, Türkiye, attending the 2026 Global Leadership Conference, where discussions are centred on digital transformation and international partnerships in tertiary education.
Dr Fashagba is attending the conference alongside other Provosts of Colleges of Education across Nigeria, under the aegis of the Committee of Provosts, Nigeria Colleges of Education (COPNCOE). The event is holding at Istanbul Aydin University in partnership with the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
The conference, themed “Empowering Digital Transformation in Education — Leveraging World Emerging Technologies and Partnerships,” has brought together heads of Colleges of Education from across the country to explore how emerging technologies and global collaborations can reshape teacher education in Nigeria.
As part of the programme, the Provosts were given the opportunity to visit four top-ranked universities to study their models of institutional development and academic delivery. The visits provided a firsthand look at how leading global institutions structure research, technology adoption, and international collaboration to drive growth.
During the engagements, the Nigerian delegation held discussions with officials of the host universities on possible areas of collaboration with Colleges of Education back home, including research grants, technology transfer, and support for the Federal Government’s dual mandate policy for Colleges of Education.
The Provosts also made a strong case for Nigerian Colleges of Education to be included in international student exchange programmes, particularly in the area of renewable energy — a sector Nigeria has continued to prioritise as it seeks to diversify its energy mix and build local technical capacity.
Discussions at the conference also touched on diverse land and investment opportunities available in Nigeria, as the Provosts sought to position their institutions — and the country at large — as attractive destinations for international academic and technological partnerships.
For Kogi State College of Education, Ankpa, the conference comes at a strategic time.
The institution, under Dr Fashagba’s leadership, is already putting structures in place to commence implementation of the Federal Government’s dual mandate policy, which allows Colleges of Education to run both traditional teacher training programmes and degree-awarding courses in affiliation with universities.
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Stakeholders say the exposure and partnerships being forged in Istanbul could further strengthen the College’s readiness to roll out the policy, positioning it to benefit from the research collaborations, technology transfer, and international linkages being discussed at the conference.
The Global Leadership Conference continues in Istanbul, with more engagements expected before the Nigerian delegation returns home.
