By Johnbosco Agbakwuru, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu, on Friday, commissioned series of new tertiary education infrastructure projects across the country, as part of the nationwide programme of commissioning marking his administration’s third anniversary in office.
The projects, all delivered by the Federal Ministry of Education under the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), span four federal and state-owned tertiary institutions across the North Central, North West, North East.
At the Nasarawa State College of Education, Akwanga, the President inaugurated the newly built School of Science Complex — a two-storey facility housing conventional reading areas, dedicated staff and student e-libraries, the Chief Librarian’s office, secretarial offices and reference and inquiry sections. It is designed to strengthen the College’s capacity to train science teachers for basic and post-basic schools across Nasarawa State.
At the Nigerian Defence Academy, Afaka Campus, Kaduna, the President commissioned two flagship projects — the remodelled Senate Building and the new Biodiversity and Conservation Centre. The Senate Building features a 60-seat Senate Council Chamber, twin conference suites, executive offices, full lift installation, CCTV and access control, a public address and evacuation system, integrated fire suppression and a complete solar backup power system with lithium battery storage.
The Biodiversity and Conservation Centre will strengthen the Academy’s environmental science research capacity, providing facilities for academic study, biodiversity documentation and applied conservation research.
At the Hussaini Adamu Federal Polytechnic, Kazaure, in Jigawa State, the President commissioned the newly constructed Classrooms Complex, delivered under the TETFund 2024 Special High Impact Intervention. The complex significantly addresses the chronic shortage of classroom space at the polytechnic, providing a more conducive environment for academic activities, enhancing effective learning and improving the educational experience for students and staff.
Hussaini Adamu Federal Polytechnic is a leading technical education institution in the North-West, training mid-level manpower in engineering, applied sciences, environmental studies, business and management.
At Sa’adu Zungur University, Gadau Campus, in Bauchi State, the President commissioned the newly constructed Students’ Hostel — delivered under the TETFund 2024 Annual Intervention. The hostel was built at a contract sum of N738,964,701.34 over a 48-week period, and has been completed and prepared for occupation. The new hostel will significantly improve student welfare at the University, easing accommodation pressure on the Gadau Campus and supporting the institution’s expanding enrolment in the North-East.
Speaking on the commissioning, President Tinubu said the country’s tertiary institutions remain central to the administration’s strategy for closing the skills gap in the economy and lifting learning outcomes in public schools.
”When you build a classroom, you build a generation,” the President said. ”The investment we are making in our colleges of education, polytechnics and universities today will determine the quality of every Nigerian schoolchild for decades to come.”
He added: ”Our Armed Forces deserve the best — in training, in equipment and in the institutions that shape their character. The Nigerian Defence Academy stands at the heart of that mission, and we will continue to invest in its future.”
On the country’s polytechnics, the President said: ”Our polytechnics are the engine room of Nigeria’s technical workforce. We will continue to invest in their classrooms, their laboratories and their staff. The skills our economy needs will not come from lecture theatres alone. They will come from hands trained in real workshops.”
The President also commended the Honourable Minister for Education and the leadership of TETFund for sustaining the intervention programme across federal and state-owned tertiary institutions, as well as the contractors, consultants and institutional managements that delivered the projects to schedule. He urged the staff and students of the beneficiary institutions to put the new facilities to the use for which they were built, and to maintain them to the highest standards.
The commissionings form part of the federal government’s continued investment in tertiary education infrastructure under the Renewed Hope Agenda, in partnership with TETFund and the state governments of the host institutions.
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