The Senate yesterday passed a Bill seeking to establish a Federal University of Transportation in President Muhammadu Buhari’s home town, Daura, Katsina State.
The passage of the Bill followed the consideration of a report by the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETfund.
In his presentation, Committee Chairman Ahmad Babba-Kaita (Katsina North) said the establishment of the university would give Nigerians access to modern knowledge, emerging techniques and skills in the transport industry.
The lawmaker said the institution would provide required knowledge to prospective students to enhance Nigeria’s transportation sector and make them drivers of the industry.
He explained that the development of the transport sector by knowledge transfer and capacity building would in turn generate employment opportunities for Nigerians.
“The envisaged University of Transportation has immense benefits, especially in closing the huge gap in knowledge about transportation business and enhancing technical skills while ensuring technology transfer from the most developed nations such as China, U.S.A, South Korea, etc, to benefit the Nigerian transportation industry,” Babba-Kaita said.
He added that the university, which is expected to provide the manpower needs of the Nigerian transport system and the Nigerian Railway, would be the first in West Africa with the potentials of wooing Africans and foreign investors to invest and acquire advanced knowledge in research and exploration of scientific innovation in the sector.
The Bill was passed by the chamber after its clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
Also, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the establishment of 12 private universities across the country.
Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed announced this while addressing State House Correspondents at the end of the week’s virtual FEC meeting, which was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The minister listed the states where the new universities are sited as: Kano, Niger, Gombe, Sokoto, Delta, Abia, Anambra and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
He said the council’s approval for the private universities followed a memorandum presented by the Ministry of Education on behalf of the National Universities Commission (NUC).
“Council approved the memo for the issuance of provisional licences for the establishment of 12 proposed private universities.
“The proposed private universities are: Pen Resource University, Gombe, Gombe State; Al-Ansar University, Maiduguri, Borno State; Margaret Lawrence University, Delta State; Khalifa Ishaku Rabiu University, Kano, Kano State; Sports University, Idumuje-Ugboko, Delta State; and Bala Ahmed University, Kano.
Others are: Saisa University of Medical Sciences and Technology, Sokoto State; Nigerian-British University, Hasa, Abia State; Peter University, Acina-Onene, Anambra State; Newgate University, Minna, Niger State; European University of Nigeria in Duboyi, Abuja and the North-West University, Sokoto,” he said.
Mohammed said each of the new universities will be mentored by the old universities that are close to them.