Felix Ikem, Nsukka

The outgoing vice chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Prof. Benjamin Chukwuma Ozumba, has said funding of universities in Nigeria has improved under President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

Prof. Ozumba said this in Nsukka, yesterday, during the flag-off of some projects in UNN as part of activities lined up for his end of tenure on June 14.  Some of the 17 projects include UNN Lion Science Park building, UNN Lion tractor factory building, UNN Science Laboratory building, remodelling and reconstruction of Zik’s flats hostel, among others.

“The projects I flagged off today is as a result of benevolence of the Federal Government, thanks to the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.

“You know in the past, we have been talking about poor funding of universities, but it had improved under Buhari’s administration and we give him kudos for that.

“The important thing about these projects is that they were targeted to solve problems in the university,” he said.

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The VC said the projects would boost academic excellence and innovation in the university, adding that UNN is the only university in Africa with a science park.

“We all know that knowledge-based economy rule the world today; time of commodity economy has gone. These projects will help produce students that will solve technology problems in Nigeria and in the world.

“UNN is the only university in the country and sub-saharan Africa that has a science park, which will serve as hub for technological development and innovations.”

He announced that the science park has attracted Innoson Motors into  partnership with UNN to produce locally made agriculture tractors that would be of international standard with the aim of boosting agriculture by making tractors accessible and affordable to farmers.

He  also said the remodelling and reconstruction of Zik flats hostel is done on private partnership under the agreement of Build Operate and Transfer (BOT), with the target of solving accommodation problem in the institution.