Transportation challenges: UNILORIN to introduce electric bus, light rail services for students  – VC

Wole Adedeji, Ilorin

The University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) may, in no distant time, be introducing electronic bus services to ferry its students to and from the institution’s campus and Ilorin metropolis, Vice Chancellor, Prof. Abdulwahab Egbewole has said.

Prof. Egbewole was speaking at the maiden media chat he hosted after his assumption of office also disclosed that talks were ongoing between the institution and the nation of China to introduce commuter light rail services for the same purpose.

There had been serious transportation challenges of late, for both the students, staff and other members of the academic community said to be occasioned by the ongoing construction of an overhead bridge along the University Road at Tanke area of Ilorin.

However, the institution is said to be looking beyond the construction issue but rather, also facing the fact that the growing subscription to the university every year by prospective candidates seeking spaces and their subsequent admission into the school had made its population to steadily rise.

 

 

This reason, therefore, prompted the need to find good solutions to the problem even after the overhead bridge would have been completed, according to an official who is seeking anonymity.

Listing arears where the institution had been breaking grounds in recent times, Prof. Egbewole said the University had produced 11 out of 500 celebrated authors ranked in the world while it is in good academic partnership with other Universities for academic excellence.

Also, he disclosed that a total number of 31 Professors and 38 readers had been elevated recently while models are being designed to make research work results become marketable enough with a view to generate funds which would help to serve as alternative sources to run the university.

According to him, a large scale poultry farm worth about N500 million is to take off through a bank loan which is planned be be offset within one year of its operations. This will be another source of fund survival target of the university, the Vice Chancellor added.

Meanwhile, Prof. Egbewole said his immediate target was to lead the University of Ilorin to be ranked among the best 10 in Africa and the best 1,000 in the world.

Also, he said his dream was to produce the best of First Class graduates of the University whose academic acts and deeds would justify their feats by all standards, he added.