On 30th October, 2023, the FAST4Future STEM Festival took the stage at the Faculty of Physical Science auditorium at Nsukka campus of the university. The event was part of one week orientation programme for freshmen being matriculated into this first indigenous university in Nigeria. Participants were drawn from various academic departments in faculties of physical sciences, biological sciences and engineering. Participation in the STEM festival was impressive as over 200 students at different levels of study took part in the event. 

During the event, there were exhibitions and demonstration of scientific investigation strategies. In one of the demonstrations, Prof. Finbarr Odo emphasized the importance of distance determination in space exploration and demonstrated to the participants, an open field experiment on how astronomers can estimate distances to astronomical objects. There was also demonstration on the use of optical telescope for viewing celestial bodies. For the first time in their life, some of the participants with awe watched the beauty of the African sky through the optical telescope.

The panel discussions featured stakeholders in science, technology engineering and mathematics education, including the Head of Department of Physics and Astronomy, Prof. Paul Asogwa, who represented the Vice Chancellor, the President of Astronomical Society of Nigeria, Prof. Augustine Ubachukwu, FAST4Future team members from University of Nigeria, Nsukka, representatives from the Centre for Basic Space Science (CBSS) and STEM based departments of the university.

In the panel discussion, the President of Astronomical Society of Nigeria, Prof. Augustine Ubachukwu took the panel through a memory lane of astronomy and space science development in Nigeria and lamented the dwindling interest of young African students in the field of space science. He expressed hope of rekindling the interest in space science among young students through FAST4Future.

In his remarks, Prof. Asogwa who is the Head of Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University expressed gratitude to the European Union for investing huge resources through the FAST4Future project in order to advance STEM education and activities in Africa and encouraged participants to ensure that the opportunities offered through STEM by European Union do not elude them. In his words, ‘I encourage you to utilize the opportunities offered by the European Union through FAST4Future, to build your STEM potentials in order to be globally marketable in the current JAPA trend in Nigeria’

In conclusion, the STEM festival was a successful one and the Nigerian FAST4Future team and the entire community eagerly await the next edition of the programme.