Kogi state government has announced the approval of a third state university, proposed to be located in the western senatorial district of the state.
Amongst many other things, the state government believes the new institution will provide more educational facility for young university hopeful in the state.
Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU) Anyigba and Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara are both state-owned institutions.
Making the announcement, the state Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Wemi Jones, hinted that the process would involve the inauguration of a 15-man implementation committee, made up of Professors from all over Kogi State.
Jones said the committee would be given the responsibility of drafting the university law, academic brief and the master plan adding that they would also be saddled with the task of recommending a suitable location and whether the university would be specialised or conventional.
‘’It is expected that the committee will give its report within the next one month from the inauguration so that we can move as fast as possible as it would be the government’s desire to see the university kick off before the end of this tenure,” the commissioner said.
Giving an instance, the Commissioner narrated that during the last admission exercise at the Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU) Anyigba there was a population explosion of prospective intakes as the school had over 25,000 admission seekers as against capacity intake of about 6,000, noting that even indigenes of the state were possibly deprived of admission or their intended course of study.
He recalled that one of the primary reason for the establishment of Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTECH), Osara was to mitigate the challenge of the state’s qualified students, not gaining admission to courses of their choices because of the fact that Kogi is regarded as a state that is educationally advantaged.
According to him, “Kogi West is blessed with tones of academia and highly known for education, hence putting a university in Kogi West, particularly Okun land is so apt.”
The Commissioner asserted that funding has been and would always be a challenge but the government decided to take the bull by the horn and make such audacious move, while he assured that the 15-man committee would be mandated to make recommendations on sources of funding for the approved institution.
In his own briefing, the Commissioner for Works, Samson Bako, hinted that the state executive council approved the procurement of 3 modern fire trucks as part of plans to ensure rapid responses and salvage any possible fire outbreak in the state.
He also noted that the Council received reports and ratified some of the ongoing projects across the state including the construction of internal roads at the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, Itakpe – Okene – Total road which has both reached advanced stage of completion. The council also ratified additional work for Okene Township Road and the school of Nursery and Midwifery Obangede.
Speaking also, the Chief Press Secretary, Onogwu Muhammed reiterated that the state government, under the leadership of Governor Yahaya Bello, has remained consistent in delivering on the infrastructural development pledge made to the people of the state assuring that ongoing projects would be completed in due course.
