Agaju Madugba, Katsina
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday performed the ground breaking ceremony for the building of the University of Transportation, in his country home of Daura, Katsina State
Speaking at the ceremony, Buhari said that the establishment of the university was part of his administration’s efforts at furthering the development of railway transportation system in particular and the transportation sector in general.
According to Buhari, the establishment of the institution will equally pave way for job creation and domestication of railway engineering, among other benefits.
According to him, “this project is part of ongoing efforts by the Federal Government towards the promotion and development of indigenous capacity through technology exchange and knowledge transfer, to effectively maintain and operate the numerous railway infrastructure.
“This policy is being vigorously pursued by this administration and as you are aware, this administration accords priority to the development of our country’s railway transportation.
“You may recall that in July 2016, the Abuja-Kaduna rail line was completed and put into operation while the Lagos-Ibadan and Ajaokuta rail lines are at the last stages of completion.
“This administration will prioritise the participation of indigenes and application of local content, human and material, in the development of infrastructure as component of the economic recovery and growth plan for Nigeria.
“When established, the university will among other things, pave way for domestication of railway engineering and general transportation sciences in Nigeria thereby breaking the technology gap in the railway sector and ultimately the transportation sector.
“Furthermore, the project is expected to have multiplier effects on the economy as well as on the lives of the students and Nigerians in general.
“The project is expected tho generate academic and non-academic jobs and also produce the much needed learning platform for engineers, technicians and transportation managers who will gain skills on various areas of technology development, management and related transportation sciences.”