By Ibrahim HassanWuyo
Kaduna State Government is committed to help place the Kaduna State University (KASU) at the forefront of the revolution in higher education in Nigeria.
Governor Nasir El Rufai who made this pledge at the groundbreaking ceremony of the permanent site of the main campus of the University on Friday also paid tribute to his predecessors who founded KASU.
The governor who was represented by Dr Hadiza Balarabe, the Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, challenged the management of KASU to partner with private and public institutions to fund and locate projects at the permanent site.
Dr Balarabe also appealed to Kaduna state’s ‘’development partners and friends in the corporate world to support our drive to build a world-class university. ‘’
“Since 2015, the focus of the Kaduna State Government on human capital development has come to be recognised as a pillar of our Putting People First governance agenda.
“Central to this has been a relentless drive to expand access to Education and Health. It is no accident that these two sectors consistently account for the biggest chunk of our annual budget,’’ she explained.
According to the Deputy Governor, Kaduna state has ‘’ prioritised the first 12 years of education, making education free and compulsory till the completion of secondary school.
“This has necessitated a continuous effort to reverse the consequences of decades of neglect of the sector. The state government continues to invest in renovating schools and building new schools and classrooms where necessary,’’ she added.
Dr Balarabe further noted that ‘’technical and vocational education is receiving similar attention, as is the prime question of empowering our people with the skills for the 21st Century.’’
The Deputy Governor noted that KASU had functioned from the main campus in Kaduna and the Kafanchan campus.
“During our first term, we adopted a multicampus policy for all state-owned tertiary institutions, to further expand access to these schools,’’ she argued.
Dr Balarabe further said that the El Rufai administration decided to move KASU’s main campus to the vast land in Rigachikun, from the limited space in which its Kaduna campus began.
Vanguard News Nigeria
