The Students of the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Technology at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), have successfully completed a multi-year prosthetics initiative that has restored mobility to Mr. Adamu Abdullahi, a long-time mendicant at the University's North Gate. The project led by Dr. Ebenezer Atoyebi and executed by successive sets of 500 level students, culminated in the presentation of a custom-made transtibial prosthetic device to Mr. Adamu on Friday, August 21, 2026.
The recipient, Mr. Adamu, a 60-year-old man from Kano State lost his left leg in 2003 following a road accident while working as a truck driver and, ever since, he had been using supporters for his movement. He had been a mendicant at FUTA North Gate for the past 11 years before receiving this device.
Dr. Atoyebi first identified Mr. Adamu as a potential beneficiary in 2023, envisioning him as a model case for a prosthetics project under the course Prosthetics and Orthotics (BMT502), which he has been teaching since joining the university as a lecturer.
Students from the 2024/2025 academic session (Class 24 set) developed initial models of the transtibial device, while students from the 2025/2026 session (Class 25 set) completed and fully funded the final prosthetic device.
This project stands as a testament to Dr. Atoyebi's steadfastness and reflects his broader commitment to community service. He is an academic who looks beyond the classroom, and believes that coursework must be used as a vehicle to address real and pressing needs within the community surrounding the university and the nation at large.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Head of Department, Biomedical Engineering, Professor Isiaka Oladele who commended the initiative also, encouraged students to look beyond classrooms, urging them to take up challenges like this in their future endeavour by identify problems within their immediate environment and take initiative as problem-solver. He urged students to continue translating academic knowledge into practical solutions. In like manner, Dr. Atoyebi emphasized that, it is only by transforming knowledge into tangible projects that meet immediate local needs that we can truly say we uphold the university's motto, which is 'Technology for Self-Reliance.
The Vice Chancellor of FUTA Professor Adenike Oladiji has described the initiative as a commendable community service , one of the pillars of the University system. The Vice Chancellor said with adequate institutional backing and support from well meaning individuals , non governmental organisation and relevant government agencies the department and the school is well positioned to extend life-changing prosthetic solutions to many more individuals in need across the country.
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