Bauchi State government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the King Mohammed VI University Teaching Hospital Morocco on health issues.
A statement by the Special Adviser to Governor Mohammed Abubakar on Communications, Mr. Shamsuddeen Abubakar, said the governor and a team from the state Ministry of Agriculture were in the Kingdom of Morocco to attend the programme of Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP-Africa) in Casablanca in fulfillment of the bilateral agreement between Bauchi and the Kingdom of Morocco.
”As part of his working visit to the Kingdom, Governor Abubakar paid a visit to the prestigious King Mohammed VI University Teaching Hospital where a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at achieving the set goal was signed.
“The successful signing of the MoU will immensely help the state Ministry of Health cope with modern trends and challenges for the benefit of the good people of the state.
“The hospital has the medical, financial and technical expertise to assist the Bauchi State government in organising and setting up the required infrastructure towards actualising its desires in the health sector.
“Part of the objectives of the MoU is to facilitate a situation where the Bauchi State government and the King Mohammed VI University Teaching Hospital would work to establish an efficient and credible healthcare delivery system in line with modern trends in the healthcare sector and to sustain the same through effective training of the required medical personnel of the state.”
Based on the MoU, a cardiac centre would be established in Bauchi, while the hospital would assist in the establishment of a centre for Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Medical Training in the state.
The hospital would also establish an Ear, Nose and Throat Centre (ENT), assist in the development and organisation of Intensive Care Unit (ICU), establish a Neuro-Surgical Unit, a Cancer Management Centre, train and re-train personnel, among others.
The Memorandum of Understanding shall be governed by the laws of Nigeria, the statement said.
As part of his official visit to the Kingdom of Morocco at the instance of Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP) Africa, Governor Abubakar and his entourage also visited King Mohammed VI Polytecnic University, Ben Guerir where he sought and got consent for the building of a new fertiliser plant in Bauchi State.
The statement said Governor Abubakar and a team from the state Ministry of Agriculture were in the Kingdom of Morocco to attend the programme of Office Chérifien des Phosphates (OCP-Africa) in Casablanca in fulfillment the bilateral agreement.
“ The Moroccan Company, Office Chérifien des Phosphates, OCP-Group are the largest exporters of Phosphate in all its forms worldwide and the world’s first exporters of Phosphate based products. Phosphate is used in making high quality fertilizer.The governor, in company of Nigerian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco, Amb Abubakar Baba, paid a visit to one of OCP’s Chemical Complexes, Jorf Lasfar Chemical Complex, which is the largest in the world.
“The Executive Director, Industry Operations took the governor and his entourage round the 504.00 HA complex. The Jorf Lasfar Industrial Complex have the capacity to supply Phosphate to the whole world as they comfortably produce 13 million tonnes daily and 6 million kilo-tonnes per annum.
A strategy meeting was held between the Bauchi State Government delegation headed by Governor Abubakar and the Management of the OCP Group headed by the Chief Executive Officer of the group, Mr. Karim Lotfi Senhadji.
Agreements were concluded whereby the OCP Group agreed to: “Collaborate with the Bauchi State Government in numerous areas of modern agricultural development. As a result of the governors ’s commitment to the development of agriculture in the state and his outstanding achievements in the sector particularly the resuscitation of the Bauchi Fertiliser company
“The OCP Group has resolved to complement the efforts of the governor by building a brand new world-class standard fertiliser company in the state. The new company will be large enough to cater for the needs of the entire northern region.The group also promised to upgrade the existing Bauchi Fertiliser Company.”
The governor also visited the Khouribga mining site in Khouribga Province of the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region of Morocco.
Khouribga owes its growth to its large deposits of phosphate. It is the largest phosphate mining deposit in the world. The phosphate is being transferred to the chemical complex for making fertilizers.
Meanwhile, Governor Abubakar has secured Scholarship opportunities for Bauchiindigenes at King Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Ben Guerir, Kingdom of Morocco
As part of his official visit to the Kingdom of Morocco, Governor Abubakar and his entourage also visited King Mohammed VI Polytecnic University, Ben Guerir, where he secured capacity building and scholarship opportunities for Bauchi indigenes.
A statement the spokesman said: “The governor used the opportunity to solicit for admission and scholarship opportunities for indigenes of Bauchi State and capacity building courses for civil servants. The university graciously granted his request
“The Bauchi State Government and the university management agreed on the following: Offer of full scholarship to indegenes of Bauchi State for undergraduate studies, full scholarship for staff of the State Ministry of Agriculture at Masters level, collaboration between the university and the Bauchi State College of Agriculture and also the Bauchi State University’s newly established Faculty of Agriculture in areas of research, technology transfer and staff training. The university is owned by the OCP-Group.”
