AUN president featured in US media

Dr. Margee Ensign, President of the American University of Nigeria, was featured recently in two major American broadcast programmes, the National Public Radio’s daily news offering, “Tell Me More”, and on Alhurra TV’s “Al Youm” (Arabic for Today).
NPR is a radio network with 27 million weekly listeners and correspondents around the world, while Alhurra TV is one of several networks run by the Broadcasting Board of Governors – “an independent federal agency supervising all US government-supported, civilian international media.”
During the interview with NPR’s Michel Martin, Dr. Ensign addressed security challenges in Adamawa State and in Nigeria, and how AUN, along with the Adamawa Peacemakers Initiative, is dealing with the state of emergency by maintaining the calm and opening dialogue with the local community.
She also discussed how the state of emergency impacted Adamawa State.
She said: “We continue to try to respond in a way where we’re making a positive contribution to development, and, through the peace council (Adamawa Peacemakers Initiative), to keeping our area safe.
“The state I’m in, Adamawa, has had a history of being a place of great peace and harmony.
“We’re one of the few places in the North, especially the city we’re in, in Yola, that’s half Christian and half Muslim.
“We have a television station (TV Gotel) associated with the University.
“We brought all the community leaders, about 50 people, to the campus and did what was for northern Nigeria, may have been the first town hall TV show.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to hear from community leaders, not just the concerns but what the Adamawa Peacemakers Initiative could do to begin to ease some of the challenges that the people are facing.”
“Tell Me More” is produced at NPR’s Washington, D.C. headquarters by NPR news, with the African American Public Radio Consortium.
At Alhurra TV, where Dr. Ensign appeared on the talk show, “Al Youm”, she discussed security and governance in Nigeria and other African countries.
The show is broadcast in Arabic throughout the Middle East, and in English in Africa.
Founded in 2003, AUN is Africa’s first development university, inspired by the vision of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that knowledge must be applied to benefit all people.
AUN is training young Africans to assume the leadership of their societies through a dynamic development process that is based on the enduring values of Africa’s vibrant cultures and rich past.
To read the entire NPR transcript, please log on to http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=202660480 Audio link: http://pd.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/npr/tmm/2013/07/20130716_tmm_03.mp3?dl=1