SAN FRANCISCO, September 02, (THEWILL) – The Borno State Government has entered into a joint sponsorship arrangement with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Management Agency (NIMASA) to train 25 youths of Borno State origin in Maritime Engineering .
The beneficiaries, which have since concluded the first part of their training which took them to AMET University, India, were selected under the Nigerian Seafarers’ Development Programme initiated by NIMASA, which foots 40 percent of the cost while Borno State Government shoulders the remaining 60 percent.
The beneficiaries are expected to spend the first year of the four years programme in India, two years in the United Kingdom and last year doing practical on the waters after which they will bag a degree in Maritime and Nautical Engineering.
Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State, while receiving the youths at the Government House in Maiduguri at the weekend, said he was happy with the commitment of the students to their studies, especially as some of them won awards for academic excellence.
The governor, disclosed that Borno Government will be spending N198 million, which represents 60 percent of the total charge of the course, saying the money was not too much for development of human capacity of Borno indigenes to make them compete favourably in the global arena.
He said the students have made the state proud and assured that his government will not relent in its efforts of sponsoring them to pursue specialised courses that are lacking in the state.
Shettima also promised that his administration will continue to explore professional courses that are beneficial and crucial, especially in the petroleum – related areas as the state looks forward to joining petroleum producing states soon.
The state has been at the centre of advocating for oil exploration in the Lake Chad Basin, believed to be rich in oil with the exploration of oil by the Chad Republic from the same basin.
The governor said it is only a matter of time before the state joins the oil producing states as there is high prospect of commercial oil in Borno .
He promised that willing female students from the state with credits in science subjects will be sent to abroad for specialised courses in the field of medicine in any institution of learning across the world.
He advised the maritime students that as they prepare for the second phase of their studies in England, they should read online and study the laws of the United Kingdom so as to avoid falling into trouble, charging them to be good ambassadors of Borno and Nigeria by shunning all forms of unruly behaviour .
He also announced a donation of $2,000 dollars to each of the 25 students as special pocket money which they would use in England.
Speaking earlier during the visit, the Commissioner for Higher Education, Hon. Bello Ayuba, noted that already Borno State Government has fulfilled its obligations according to the agreements with payments made to NIMASA.
He expressed gratitude to the governor for his foresight, saying although most of the states in the federation have trained their youths as seafarers, it was the first time in history that Borno was sponsoring its citizens for maritime training.
