Varsity, others plan sugarcane, biofuel project in Taraba State

The Taraba State University (TSU) in collaboration with the Nigeria National Petroleum Cooperation (NNPC) plans to establish sugarcane and biofurl project in the state.

Other partners in the project, which is to be executed in a Public Private Partnership (PPP), are Contec Global, Praj Industrial Limited and Geron Oil and Gas Limited.

Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Vincent Tenebe, made this known yesterday in Jalingo, at the opening of a training workshop on effective leadership, management and information and communication technology (ICT) for local government officials.

He said the project would generate one million jobs for the people of Taraba and neighboring states.

The decision to embark on the partnership, he said, was in line with the governor’s mandate to the university to engage in internally generated revenue (IGR) activities to boost the state income and become self-reliant.

Stressing that the university was waiting for the governor’s approval and the provision of land for the establishment of a 20 to 50 hectares sugarcane project, the institution ongoing partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development (UNIDO) and Learning Initiative For Entrepreneurship (LIFE), he said would also be an added advantage to the state.

His words: “I assure that our UNIDO/LIFE partnership will also provide micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) capacity development training in partnership with the local councils.

“It will be done in such a way that within six years, the vision of the Mambilla Hydro Electric Power Project of providing about 100,000 MSMEs and creating one million jobs for Taraba State and Northeast will be actualised.”

The Guardian learnt the university, which is behind the ongoing five-day training programme for politicians in the 16 local councils, vowed to put in place a working team to boost the efficiency of politicians in the state.

“The university shall immediately put in place a working team to this effect so that it will not end up a failed project but a pragmatic, sustainable demand driven capacity development training programme that will re-engineer governance at the all levels,” he added.

Speaking, Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku, reiterated his determination to continue to assist the university, which he said, would soon be one of the best institutions in the country and Africa at large.

Also speaking, Speaker, Taraba State House of Assembly, Peter Abel Diah, said capacity building was key to the success of any administration, adding that the workshop would go a long way to increase productivity of the political class.