Government executes 43 road projects in tertiary institutions

• Onu tasks local engineers, others on industrialisation

Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has revealed that the road intervention programme had renovated 43 defective roads in tertiary institutions across the federation.

Fashola made the revelation at the commissioning of over 1.92 kilometers of internal road rehabilitated by the ministry at the Nigerian Law School, Bwari, Abuja. Represented by the Acting Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Federal Controller of Works, Usman Yakubu, explained that the intervention programme, initiated by the ministry, was an investment aimed at improving learning and infrastructure in the education sector. He said 85 people were employed during construction of the internal road at the legal institution, contributing to job-creation initiatives of the government.

The school’s Director General, Prof. Isa Chiroma, applauded the move, appealing for replication of the gesture in other campuses at Kano, Yola, Enugu and Yenagoa.
MEANWHILE, Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, has urged indigenous engineers and scientists to brace themselves for innovations that would quicken industrialisation in the country.

Onu gave the charge, yesterday, when he received President of Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Babagana Muhammed, in his office in Abuja. He commended the body for its immense contributions towards nation0building, including human development and provision of scholarships to science students in the country.

The minister, who said Executive Order 5 would be sustained by bringing Nigerian engineers and scientists to the centre of the country’s economic activities, noted that Nigeria’s industrialisation process had not worked fast due to a weak technological base.

He stated that the ministry was determined to accelerate the whole thing, adding that from all ongoing researches world over, new knowledge was coming up, adding that it was important Nigerian engineers got acquainted with innovative knowledge.

Onu called on the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN) and the National Science Engineering and Infrastructure (NASENI) to work in synergy to end power problems in the country.

Earlier, President of NSE, Mohammed, said his society had created an advocacy platform for exploration and harnessing of regional resources for rapid regional economic development, through collaborations amongst government, academia and industry. He enumerated many other intervention efforts of the society such as supporting the Federal Government in its effort to curb the spread of coronavirus pandemic in the country.