FG Commissions Africa’s Largest Off-Grid Solar Power Plant in BUK

The Federal Government has commissioned the largest off-grid solar hybrid power plant in   Bayero University, Kano under the Energising Education Programme (EEP), aimed at providing sustainable decentralized energy to the nation’s university  campuses.
The Vice-President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, GCON, SAN, who   commissioned the project said it was the second in the series after a similar one at Alex Ekwueme University, Ndufu-Alike, Ebonyi State.
He said the energise education programme of the government was a project aimed towards providing a conducive learning environment in Nigeria universities in the next four years.
  Professor Osinbajo said that as a result, 55,815 students and 3,077 staff of BUK now have access to electricity supply from the university’s 7.1 mega watts solar hybrid power plant.
He explained that the EEP project under implementation by the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) focused on developing off-grid dedicated independent power plants and the rehabilitation of existing distribution infrastructure.
“The overall goal is targeted at supplying clean, safe and reliable power to 37 federal universities and 7 affiliated university teaching hospitals,” he said.
He reiterated that the BUK commissioning included the launch of 11.41km of solar powered streetlights as well as a world-class renewable energy training centre.
The Vice President charged Nigerians to embrace the emerging renewable off-grid energy sector, saying it was poised to generate significant impact for the Nigerian market, as well as the un-served, underserved communities and higher institutions of learning.
Prof. Osinbajo stated that with the growing solar generation, there was need for more private sector participation in collaboration with the federal government.
The Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Mrs. Damilola Ogunbiyi, described the project as the largest off-grid solar hybrid power plant in Africa.
She said “It is one that as Nigerians, we should be very proud of the project, thanks to the commitment of the Federal Government towards sustainable energy and education and education”.
In his remarks, Vice Chancellor of BUK, Professor Mohammed Bello re-echoed that students and staff of the University could now experience learning and teaching in a safer, cleaner and more conducive academic environment.
It would be recalled that EEP is a Federal Government initiative under the Rural Electrification Agency aimed at providing an off-grid captive power that is reliable and sustainable across 37 Federal Universities and seven Federal Teaching Hospitals.
In addition, the EEP was meant to provide street lighting for illumination and safety as well as a component for workshop/ training centre for each of the EEP beneficiary institutions.
The Phase one of the EEP cut across nine Federal Universities and one Teaching Hospital which is located across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
The phase one is fully funded by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) and will train 180 Female STEM students.
Within this phase there are seven solar hybrid projects currently benefitting from funding from the Green Bond issued by the FGN. The phase one projects was estimated to benefit 127,000 students and 28,000 staff of universities and 4,700 staff in Teaching Hospitals including  Doctors, and power 2,850 streetlight.
Further analysis of the BUK power plant also showed that the project catered for 277 academic buildings, 120 commercial buildings and provided comfortable support accommodation for 478 staff. It is estimated that about 16.5 mw of existing generators and Carbon Dioxide emission would be conserved, thereby causing this quantum of mega watts capacity of petrol and diesel generators to be removed with the EEP become fully operational in the University.
Available statistics also showed that the solar of power infrastructure had a total capacity of 8.1mwh (mega watts per hour) battery storage, total capacity of 2.4mw backup generators, about 10,680 solar panels installed, with a total capacity of the solar panels at 3.5MWp.
On the street lighting and distribution infrastructure, the contractors Messrs. METKA provided a total of 694 installed street lightings, covering about 11.41km and with 9.636MW capacity of transformers. 
The power project has a distribution infrastructure of eight transformers, nine distribution panels and about 2.65km length of distribution cables. The solar power project also houses a world class renewable training centre, where some research training courses would be undertaken by staff and students. Already about 20 female STEM students have undergone Solar Energy and Metering Training in the facility, while an additional 182 direct and indirect jobs had been created so far, including jobs for six Project Managers, three construction managers, two power systems engineers, five mechanical engineers, four civil engineers, 10 renewable experts, 11 designers, 12 electrical engineers, 40 brick layers and 89 laborers.

NPMCN Collaborates with NUC in Medical Training

The Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, mni, MFR, FNAL, has expressed satisfaction with the partnership  between the Commission and the National Postgraduate College of Nigeria (NPMCN) on the  improvement of medical education in Nigeria.
Receiving the President of NPMCN, Professor O. B Olalilly  Taria and his team in his office last week, the executive secretary  described the existing relationship between the NUC and NPMCN as critical, stating that the postgraduate medical college had been a very relevant partner in the commission’s guest to review the curriculum of medical.
Professor Rasheed stated that NUC was concluding the  review of universities curriculum including that of medicine for which the Commission reached  out and borrowed ideas from countries like Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, whose universities have very strong medical education.
The NUC scribe gave the example of  Iran which run a five-year programme in medicine and upon graduation the students seamlessly move into their house job whereas that in Nigeria  students were left to search for where to do their house job after graduating from the medical college.
He said that Nigeria needed to study these countries to put things right and expressed dismay on the rivalry between the different medical bodies which led to unnecessary frictions.
Prof. Rasheed also said that  government was not investing enough in Medical Education but    expressed delight that things were now getting better with government’s renewed interest in building more universities of medical sciences which, he described, as a welcome development.
He agreed that it was a good idea to have more medical universities in the country provided they would be properly funded and assured that NUC would on its part encourage more investments in medical universities.
He urged NPMCN to visit the existing ones to see the facilities  on ground and to discuss with the owners of the universities and the students on ways to improve and report back to the commission.
Professor Rasheed further assured the team that NUC would visit the Post Graduate Medical College with a high-powered team to see  how they are conducting their affairs.
He reiterated that NUC does not intend to criminalise or abolish Masters Programme as its acquisition was eligibility for obtaining PhD which must be in clinic sciences, insisting  that the Senate of a university was the only body to approve the award of PhD’s.
He added that admission into the Doctor of Medicine (MD) programme should be restricted to Fellows or those undergoing Residency Training.
He argued that the reason many Nigerian doctors travel out of the country was because of the roadblock they encounter after graduating from the universities.
He stated that the country was under investing in Medical Education and that there was the need for NUC and NPMCN to broaden collaboration which would incorporate Directors in the Ministry of Health.
Responding, Professor I. A. Yakasai, Provost College of Health Sciences, Bayero University, Kano, thanked the executive secretary for motivating them and sending them on tour of Egypt and Sudan.
He said the trips to Egypt and Sudan were very revealing because of the experience they gathered on how things were done the right way in their medical schools, adding that  Basic Medical training was not as robust as it should be in Nigeria when compared to the countries visited.
He noted that the number of doctors Nigeria produced was still not enough, but said the medical schools could be more efficient with the right things done in the country.
The Provost  agreed with Prof. Rasheed that NUC and NPMCN should meet often to deepen collaboration.
In the delegation of the College were its Registrar, Professor Owoidho Udofia; Vice-President, Professor Borodo Musa; Treasurer, Professor Anyanwu.