Education: Katsina Spends N15bn, To Partner US Varsity

The Katsina State Government has spent about N15 billion for the improvement of education at five tertiary institutions in the state, according to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Higher Education, Dr. Garba Shehu Matazu.

Addressing a press conference in Kaduna yesterday, Matazu, who said the state government had concluded arrangements to sign an MoU with Virginia State University in the United States, added that the amount was spent between 2007 to date, in the execution of projects in higher institutions across the state.

Matazu added that the institutions are the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University, Hassan Usman Polytechnic, Isa Kaita College of Education and Yusuf Bala Usman College of Legal and General Studies.

He said the amount was spent on the provision of infrastructure and teaching materials, to provide the enabling environment that would enhance the quality of teaching and learning in the institutions.

“The amount spent within the period under review was largely for the provision of capital projects for the state-owned institutions and the newly-established federal university, Dutsinma, where the state government has assisted with N1 billion,” he stated.

The special adviser said government had ensured the provision of necessary facilities and equipment in the state-owned tertiary institutions as a result of which courses offered by the institutions have been fully accredited by the relevant monitoring agencies.

He said Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University (UMYU), the state-owned university, received N107? million as quarterly overhead, even as he stated that “an MOU will be signed between UMYU and the Virginia State University to cover staff and student exchange between the two varsities.”

According to him, within the last six years, government had expended over N12 billion in UMYU for the completion of the university’s first phase projects, as well as provision of other essential facilities to boost learning in the varsity.