HISTORY OF IBI
The IBI was born to respond to the contemporary need for a change in the perception and attitude of man towards the life and survival of the human race. As a tertiary institution, it recognizes the role of education in individual and community development and as a Research Institution; it aims to probing assiduously into the life and survival of mankind with an interdisciplinary approach.
Three major events sharpened and strengthened this need:
The call by the then Pope, now St. John Paul II to the first group of specialists in Bioethics in Europe, Central and South America, Asia and Africa (to which the Founded, Prof. Edmund Ugwu Agbo was a member) during the time of its formation in the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, Vatican City and the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart “Agostino Gemelli”, Rome to promote the “Culture of Life” and discourage the contrasting “Culture of Death” in the contemporary world.Þ
The highly felt invasion of science, technology and noxious ideology, especially in the fields of biotechnology and genetic engineering/molecular biology and the pervasion of their destructive consequences.Þ
The continued deterioration of the scourges of intra-personal warfare – hunger and sicknesses – and also intrapersonal, interpersonal and international warfare – especially digital terrorism and bioterrorism.Þ
The IBI as a response to the above call was founded to introduce or reintroduce all those programmes that bring all disciplines together to proffer joint solution to the problems plaguing that have been contemporary world.
The founder of IBI, Prof. Edmund Ugwu Agbo, was one of the Pioneer Master’s degree students of Bioethics to whom the (Pope) St John Paul II directed the above-cited injunction. His zeal to concretize the appeal of the Holy Father John Paul II, apply the dictates of Bioethics, and further deepen his love for mankind, met the approval and support of Professor Luigi Mescia, OBM.
Professor Luigi Mescia, an Italian and his foundation – THE FRATERNITY FOUNDATION – became the first pillar on which the infrastructure of the IBI was built. Barr. Josephine Onajite Agbo, Johnpaul Agbo, Barr. Kelvin Ifeanyi Ugwu Ebuka Ugwu, and Eze Njioga, were solidly behind the foundation of the IBI. Prof Okpara Okpara, Chief Albert Ogbodo, Barristers Leo Asogwa, Andrew Nwokocha, and Amaechi Nnamchi also played great roles in the consolidation of the foundation of the IBI.
These overseas collaborators -Prof. Camurati of the La Ludes University, Lugano Switzerland, Prof. Gianluigi Falchi (OBM) of the Lateran University, Vatican City and Dr Hippolitus Eze of the University of Leeds, UK represented veritable sources of encouragement to the consolidation of IBI.
The first programme in the IBI, foreign languages, started officially on the second day of August 2011 and since then, it has witnessed more than 1,150 students who came from different parts of West Africa. From October 2012, courses in the major areas of study in the IBI – Criminology, Security and Terrorism, Bioethics, Biotechnology, Genetic Engineering, Agrobiology, African Studies, Theatre Arts/Film Production, Phyto-Medicine, Banking and Finance, Electric/Electronic Engineering, Computer Forensics, among others, commenced in earnest.
Researches in different areas – Medicine – Allopathic, Naturopathic and Complementary; Environmental Management, Digital/Computer Forensics, Molecular Biology, Bioethics, Government Policies, Economic situation, Standard of education and the spread of education outfits within given localities, and so forth commenced. The researches in some of the different fields are still on, some of them have been completed, while some new ones are on-going.
The IBI Free Medical Test and Therapy on diabetes and hypertension, which officially kicked off in the Enugu East Local Government Headquarters, Nkwo-Nike on the 18th day of August 2011 is still going on.
The IBI has recently established a Technology/Business Incubation Centre that serves not only for didactic and practical training but also to guide students and researchers into technology development and innovation as well as business start-up. It has also set up a School of Sports and Music and has introduced the study of and research in Robotics, Drone Technology and Drone Technology in IBI and in the IBI Nursery, Primary and Secondary Schools. Researches amply demonstrate that these initiatives have been sure ways of “catching them young” and of channeling the youth towards gainful and sustainable entrepreneurship, identified as reliable catalyst to socio-economic development.