FG receives Chinese delegation on proposed Varsity of Transportation

The Federal Government has received a high-powered delegation from the Peoples Republic of China for talks on the proposed University of Transportation in Nigeria.

Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, received the delegation made up of officials of the Central South University (CSU) and the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) in Abuja.

He lauded China for its remarkable presence in Nigeria’s real sector through the construction of roads, bridges and other landmark infrastructural facilities.

The minister was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Mr Sonny Echono, who recalled that the CCECC had been involved in such high profile projects in Nigeria like the Kano-Lagos railway and the Abuja light rail projects, amongst others.

According to Mallam Adamu, the company was quite integrated in Nigeria and the establishment of the University of Transportation as proposed was only a logical maturity of the enormous diplomatic, cultural and commercial relations that had long existed between both countries for their mutual benefits.

He promised that once he received the details of the proposals from the official in the Federal Ministry of Transportation, the process of bringing the project to fruition, would be fast-tracked.

The minister also commended the contributions of graduates of the Central South University for bringing their expertise to bear on the various projects they were handling in Nigeria.

Earlier, in her speech, President of the Central South University, Ms Tian Hongqi, told the minister that the main purpose of the visit was to present the issue of the proposed University of Transportation in Nigeria that would focus on the manpower requirements of the transport sector.

Ms Hongqi stated that CSU had more than 100 years of experience in training experts in the areas of construction, mining, metallurgy, as well as undertaking research projects in many countries.

We are exploring the possibility of collaborating with the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria to include Nigeria among the over 200 countries we are involved with”, she further explained.

Ms Hongqi proudly informed the Minister that her University, which is ranked as one of the best in China and also biggest in China with over 58,000 students, contributed about 20per cent of the staff of CCECC.