The Senate’s legislative push for the establishment of the Federal University of Agriculture and Entrepreneurship in Bama, Borno State, received enthusiastic backing from stakeholders during a public hearing held on Monday.
At the hearing, Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan (APC, Borno Central), the bill’s sponsor, highlighted that the proposed university would be the first of its kind in Africa.
Organised by the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFUND, the hearing drew widespread support for this landmark institution.
Addressing the gathering, Kaka emphasised the need for a specialised university focusing on agriculture and entrepreneurship to address the country’s high unemployment rate and reliance on white-collar jobs.
“The proposed university, which focuses on agriculture and entrepreneurship, will provide a platform for youths to transform opportunities into business ventures and, accordingly, manage those ventures to become a medium for job creation for themselves and others,” he said.
Explaining further, Kaka described entrepreneurship education as a vital form of education that equips students with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and motivation to succeed in various entrepreneurial fields. This education, he noted, empowers students to identify investment opportunities and maximise returns, helping them become self-sustaining contributors to the economy.
The senator stressed that Nigeria urgently needs the proposed university to combat its high youth unemployment rate, which currently ranks second only to South Africa. “Disheartening is the fact that, according to the Spectator Index (a global youth unemployment index), Nigeria has an astronomical 53 per cent youth unemployment rate, placing it second only to South Africa, which has 61 per cent youth unemployment.
“These worrisome statistics have negative effects on the nation generally, as they lead to a geometric rise in social vices and crime in society, all in the quest for survival. The required solution, however, lies in the proposed university that focuses on agriculture and entrepreneurship education, preparing the youths to be responsible and enterprising,” he explained.
In his opening address, Committee Chairman Senator Mohammed Muntari Dandutse also underscored the significance of the proposed institution, noting, “The proposed Entrepreneurship University in the area of Agriculture, when established, would raise a generation of job creators and not job seekers.”
Borno State Governor Professor Babagana Zulum, alongside the Shehu of Bama, Dr Ibn Umar Kyari El-Kanemi, and other local leaders, expressed gratitude to the Senate for this legislative initiative. They committed to leveraging the planned institution to transform the economic landscape of Borno State and improve the livelihoods of its people.
