By Oscarline Onwuemenyi
The Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) disclosed that it has upgraded 16 universities and higher institutions of learning in the country, as part of its intervention projects for facilities and faculty of oil and gas related departments of selected universities that will transform them into world class institutions that are comparable to similar departments anywhere in the world.

Meanwhile, the Fund has set a benchmark for any university or institution offering oil and gas related courses to benefit from the university upgrade programme of the fund.

For a department of any university to be qualified for PTDF upgrade, it must be accredited to offer oil and gas related courses, and exhibit a capacity to carry out extensive scientific and technical research relevant to the oil gas industry.
It should in addition be capable of attracting strong industry collaboration in the development of local capacity for Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Executive Secretary of PTDF, Engr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma gave these conditions at the commissioning of the upgraded Chemical Engineering department complex of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State, designed, built and equipped by the Fund to provide a conducive learning environment for the teaching of oil and gas related courses.
Facilities in the complex include a 200 seating auditorium, classrooms with modern teaching aids, laboratory and workshop equipment, library and computer rooms, fully furnished offices for lecturers and  professors, IT facilities, books and journals, and ancillary facilities such as an electricity generating plant, borehole with water treatment plant.

The Chief Servant of Niger State, Governor Babangida Aliyu who commissioned the complex, commended the Fund for transforming the Chemical Engineering department of the University into a centre for academic excellence and research likely to address specific concerns for manpower development in the industry.

The Chemical Engineering Department Complex, Federal University of Technology, Minna, brings to 16, the number of departments so far completed, commissioned and handed over to the respective universities by PTDF under the first and second phases of the University upgrade programme.

Others include Department of Applied Chemistry, University of Calabar, Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Uyo, Department of Electrical Engineering, Bayero University, Kano; Department of Geology and Mining sciences, University of Ilorin; Department of Petroleum Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Owerri; Department of Geology, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile_Ife; and the Department of Chemical Engineering, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.

Others are oil and gas related departments in the University of Ibadan, University of Benin, University of Nigeria Nsukka, University of Port_Harcourt, University of Jos, University of Maiduguri; Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and Usman Dan Fodio University.

Another set of ten (10) universities and institutions including state universities have been slated for upgrade in the 3rd phase of the implementation of PTDF Universities upgrade projects. These are, the Benue State University, Katsina State University, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, and Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Balyelsa State.

Others include, the University of Abuja, University of Lagos, Federal University of Technology Yola, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, and the Nigerian Defence Academy.
Executive Secretary, PTDF, Engr Muttaqa Rabe Darma justified the upgrade of the structures and facilities of relevant departments in universities at huge expense to government based on the realisation that international oil companies operating in Nigeria were reluctant to engage graduates of Nigerian Universities for the reason that these graduates were deficient in training and lacked the relevant skills to work in the Industry.

“The local graduates were considered inadequate in training and therefore incapable of functioning in the industry,” said Engr. Darma.

PTDF as a short term measure designed the Overseas Scholarship Scheme (OSS) to train young Nigerian graduates in oil and gas related disciplines at Masters and doctoral levels in top universities in the United Kingdom, to fill the deficiency gap and equip them with the necessary skills and competencies to fit in directly to the oil and gas industry.

A statement from the Fund explained that to in order ensure that students in local universities received the kind of world class training as their counterparts abroad, PTDF embarked on the upgrade of the facilities of relevant departments as value addition in bringing up the right calibre of graduates that will be immediately qualified for assimilation into the industry.

It noted that in doing this, PTDF adopted a four_pronged approach. “First is to upgrade the structure and facilities, second is to enhance the faculty of the teaching and academic staff by sending them abroad on scholarship for doctoral and post doctoral studies abroad.

“The third is to endow professorial chairs in the upgraded departments to promote innovative research in oil and gas technologies and advance indigenous research in petroleum related disciplines. The Fourth is to award local scholarships to outstanding undergraduates and graduate students in the upgraded departments.”

According to the statement, an issue of concern to the Fund is the rising demand for the Fund’s Overseas Scholarship Scheme. “From the less than 70 at the inception of the scheme in 2001, the fund is sponsoring over 550 candidates at both MSc and PHD for the 2010/2011 scheme. This number represents about 5% of the 11,500 people that applied for the scholarship award.

“The reality is that faced with dwindling resources, the Fund may need to re_appraise the overseas scholarship scheme with a view to strengthening the local scholarship scheme so that more Nigerians can benefit from the scholarship schemes of the Fund,” the statement added.

It therefore becomes imperative to continue strengthening the capacity of local institutions to absorb more candidates for local scholarship. This will make it possible for a greater number of qualified Nigerians to be sponsored for scholarship awards.