By SUNDAY ABBA, Abuja
The Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN, has elected a new president in the person of
Engr Abubakar, Sadiq Zubair.
The election of Engr Abubakar as President of COREN took place at the Council’s Extraordinary Meeting held on the 13th of April, 2023, according to a statement issued on Thursday by the Head, Public Relations of the Council, Haruna Ojonugwa.
By this development, Engr Abubakar takes over from Engr. Ali A. Rabiu, who served as President of COREN from April 2019 – April 2023.
Born 61 years ago, Engr Abubakar, Sadiq Zubair is a graduate of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, where he obtained a Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Agric & Bio-Resources Engineering in 1987, an MSc in Agric & Bio-Resources Engineering in 1992 and a PhD in Agric & Bio-Resources Engineering in 2002.
In a bid to enhance his erudition and competence in teaching, research, and professional services, he attended several academic and professional courses locally and internationally.
He is a registered member of COREN and several other professional bodies locally. They include: Nigerian Institution of Agricultural Engineers (NIAE), Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Agricultural Extension Society of Nigeria (AESON), Nigerian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (NINCID), while on the international scene, he was on the Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID), International Soil Tillage Research Organization (ISTRO), American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).
He is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Agricultural Engineers (NIAE), Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), and had just been elected fellow of Nigerian Academy of Engineering (NAE).
Professor Abubakar joined the service of ABU, Zaria in 1988 as assistant lecturer with triple tasks of teaching (AED), research (IAR) and extension service delivery (NAERLS). He rose to the rank of Professor in 2006 in ABU Zaria through diligence, hard work and rich outputs in his area of competence, establishing a niche for himself in and outside Nigeria.
Professor Abubakar held various leadership positions during his 34-year academic career and counting. He was the Head of Department of Agric Engineering Department in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria; N-W Zonal Director, Deputy Director, and Executive Director all in (NAERLS) spanning 1996-2012.
He was further elevated to the position of Provost of Agric Complex and Dean, Faculty of Engineering in ABU between 2012 and 2014. Abubakar was appointed the pioneer Vice Chancellor of Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri in early 2015. However, the appointment was short lived due to federal government’s policy change. He returned to ABU and was appointed as the Dean, School of Postgraduate Studies between 2017 and 2019. He subsequently became Deputy Vice Chancellor Admin from 2019 to 2021.
He was appointed as pioneer Vice Chancellor of Capital City University, Kano in January 2022 where he is currently serving.
Professor Abubakar led the packaging and publication of Outcome Based Education (OBE) Implementors Manual and Programme Evaluators Guidelines used to create awareness on and campaign for change in the accreditation process of Engineering Programmes in the Nigerian University system from input based to Outcome Based Education (OBE) and also led the conduct of the 6 regional and 2 national training workshops where 734 University lecturers and 217 evaluators of Engineering Programmes in tertiary educational institutions were trained on OBE.
He is happily married with children.
