The Federal Government has pledged immediate intervention to rehabilitate the deteriorating internal road network of the University of Ibadan.
Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, made the promise on Saturday during a tour of the institution, expressing concern over the poor infrastructure.
Umahi said the government would reconstruct the roads with concrete pavement, install solar-powered streetlights, and possibly add CCTV cameras to boost security.
“I think we should do more for our older universities.
“There are no roads. The houses and infrastructure need serious attention,” he said.
He said the ministry had directed the university to submit a comprehensive layout of its road network.
“We will intervene in phases, and where we step in, we will use concrete, provide solar lights, and if possible, incorporate CCTV,” Umahi added.
The minister said University of Ibadan would be the first of several tertiary institutions to benefit, with similar assessments planned for Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
When asked whether the intervention would stop at three universities, Umahi said, “You start from one, then you count two.
“If we can cover all federal and even state universities, we will be glad, but we are limited by funding.”
He stressed that any university’s proposal for road intervention must be jointly signed by the vice-chancellor and the director of works.
“You cannot shave a man’s head in his absence. The ministry will only consider documents endorsed by both of them,” he said.
The minister also inspected ongoing federal highway projects in the South-West Geo-political Zone.
He said that the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesha Road project, awarded to GOPEK eight years ago, would be reviewed and converted to concrete pavement due to reported failures.
He also inspected the Ife-Akure-Benin Highway and the Oyo-Ogbomoso dual carriageway being executed by GRB.
Umahi said that while the Oyo-Ogbomoso Road was being constructed with asphalt, the shoulders would be concrete, noting that it would be an improvement over full asphalt.
He said that all new projects by the ministry of works and ongoing ones would adopt the concrete pavement standard being used in the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor of University of Ibadan, Prof. Kayode Adebowale, receiving the minister and his team, expressed appreciation for the visit.
He said: “This university, founded in 1948, has grown from just three faculties to 23 faculties and two colleges, including a postgraduate college that is a flagship in Africa.
“Today’s visit is historic and signifies hope for infrastructure development.”
