30th April, 2015
Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger has urged the incoming administration in the state to continue to accord priority to the education sector.
He made the plea on Thursday when a delegation from the National University Commission (NUC) visited him in Minna.
NAN reports that the NUC delegation was in the state to inspect the state-owned University of Education which would kick off soon.
Aliyu said that the direct impact of education would translate into the much needed development and empowerment in the state and the region as a whole.
He said that the two state universities would continue to serve residents of Niger and its environs, adding that the NUC should expedite action on the accreditation of the education university.
“Today, I am happy NUC has made provision that would sustain the growth of the university.
“When I came to power, the only state university lacked adequate facilities for teaching and learning, today we are proud to be rated 57th position by NUC.
“Our prayer is for the in-coming administration to continue with the already existing projects put in place for the delivery of quality education to the people,” he said.
Also speaking, Dr Bello Kumo, NUC Deputy Director in charge of Accreditation, said the commission would ensure that facilities in the new institution meet standards in terms of human and material resources.
“This is the second proposed university in the state.
“We had to delay the inspection because of the already existing Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University.
“We have to re-structure the four existing faculties, lecture hall and academic staff offices.
“We will report back to NUC about our observations then get back to the university as soon as possible,” he said.
Prof. Farku Haruna, the Vice Chancellor of the university, said the driving force for the establishment of the institution was the present administration’s vision of making the state one of the top three in the country.
“Over the years, our schools have witnessed unaccepted poor performance, decayed infrastructure, weak monitoring and evaluation system, erosion of pro-education values and dearth of instructional materials.
“Our emphasis is to address the need for teacher quality and supply,” he said.