Students of the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Technology at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), have restored mobility to a 60-year-old amputee through a student-executed prosthetics project.
The multi-year initiative culminated in the presentation of a custom-made transtibial prosthetic device to Mr Adamu Abdullahi on Friday, August 21, 2026.
Abdullahi, a native of Kano State, lost his left leg in a road accident in 2003 while working as a truck driver. For more than two decades, he had relied on supporters to move around.
He had also spent about 11 years as a mendicant at the North Gate of the university before becoming the beneficiary of the prosthetic device.
The project was initiated by Dr Ebenezer Atoyebi, a lecturer in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, who identified Abdullahi in 2023 as a potential beneficiary of a practical prosthetics project under the course, Prosthetics and Orthotics (BMT502).
Rather than limiting the course to classroom instruction, Dr Atoyebi used the real-life case to expose students to the process of developing a functional prosthetic solution for an individual in their immediate community.
Students of the 2024/2025 academic session, known as the Class 24 set, developed the initial models of the transtibial prosthetic device. The succeeding Class 25 set, comprising students from the 2025/2026 academic session, completed and fully funded the final device.
The initiative therefore evolved over successive academic sessions before culminating in the delivery of the completed prosthesis to its intended beneficiary.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Professor Isiaka Oladele, commended the students and Dr Atoyebi for the initiative.
Oladele encouraged students to look beyond the classroom and identify challenges within their immediate environments that could be addressed through their technical knowledge and innovative ideas.
He urged them to embrace problem-solving and continue translating academic knowledge into practical solutions capable of improving people’s lives.
Dr Atoyebi said the project reflected his conviction that university education should extend beyond theoretical learning and contribute directly to addressing pressing societal needs.
According to him, transforming knowledge into tangible solutions for immediate local problems represents a practical expression of FUTA’s motto, “Technology for Self-Reliance.”
The lecturer’s commitment to the project, which began with identifying a potential beneficiary in 2023 and continued through successive cohorts of students, has provided the students with practical experience in prosthetics while simultaneously addressing a real community need.
The Vice-Chancellor of FUTA, Professor Adenike Oladiji, described the initiative as a commendable example of community service, which she identified as one of the important pillars of the university system.
Oladiji said the university, with adequate institutional backing and support from well-meaning individuals, non-governmental organisations and relevant government agencies, could enable the Biomedical Engineering Department to extend life-changing prosthetic solutions to many more people in need across Nigeria.
The project demonstrates how university coursework can be transformed into practical interventions, combining student learning, academic mentorship and community service to provide a life-changing solution to an individual who had lived with mobility challenges for more than two decades.
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