Student leaders from tertiary institutions across Northern Nigeria have called for the expansion of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-powered transport systems to universities to address mobility challenges and improve access to academic activities.
They made the call at a summit organised by the Northern Project Coordination Office (NPCO) for student union leaders drawn from tertiary institutions across the northern states.
Speaking at the summit, Mr Aliyu Idris, the Student Union President of the University of Maiduguri, said NELFund had become a major relief for students struggling with school fees and living costs.
Idris noted that the intervention had prevented several students from dropping out of school.
“The NELFund has brought hope to many students who believe that higher education is beyond their reach. It has helped in reducing financial burden on parents, especially in a region where many families are recovering.”
Idris, however, expressed concern over inadequate transportation within the University of Maiduguri, saying many students miss lectures due to mobility challenges particularly in the morning.
“Our students are suffering because we do not have enough transportation within the university. A lot of students miss lectures, especially early morning lectures. We are pleading with the representatives of Pi-CNG+EV to please bring something to us in the Universities, We are in need of support especially in the transport aspect,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Tasiu Aminu, the President of the Student’s Union Government of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, called for stronger inclusion of tertiary institutions in national interventions.
He stressed the need to address particularly affordability in education and transportation systems related to initiatives such as the CNG and EV scheme.
“I feel like tertiary institutions should also be the target of this initiative, let this initiative also focus on how they are going to provide these kinds of opportunities for students.”
Responding, Mr Ismaeel Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles (Pi-CNG+EV), said the programme was already deploying CNG-powered transport solutions in federal tertiary institutions across the country.
Ahmed said the initiative, which began about three years ago, was currently active in about 20 universities with plans for expansion to other federal institutions.
“We have a partnership or rather a school project that we have unleashed since about three years ago, right now we are in about 20 universities. We intend to go through all the federal tertiary institutions in Nigeria to give them buses and other tricycles for them to be able to commute between different places and their places of schooling,” he said
Ahmed said the initiative was designed to complement government efforts in easing transportation challenges and improving access to education.
He assured the students that expansion to more institutions was ongoing in phases.
(NAN)
