By Olushola Okunlade
Prof. Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, the Vice Chancellor, University of Abuja says, the University, through the newly established Centre for Migration Studies, is willing to partner with the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) for better migration management.
Na’Allah stated this during a visit to the Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission,(NiDCOM), Hon.Abike Dabiri-Erewa, at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
The Vice Chancellor emphasized that the visit was to foster partnership for better migration management.
Na’Allah described the University as an institution with large impact, noting that it is the first to introduce Distance Learning in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to leverage learning opportunities for Public Servants and other Nigerians all over the country.
“As an Institution situated in the centre of Nigeria, with over 50,000 students and also the first University the Embassies come to interact with, we are ready to partner with you on the job you do as a Commission” he added.
The VC stated that the Centre is willing to talk to Nigerians and educate them on regular migration with information on several ways to migrate legitimately.
In his words, “we can work on joint research, joint sensitization effort to curb migration crisis, train your staff and other possible ways to best enhance migration management”.
Receiving the delegation on behalf of the Chairman/CEO NiDCOM, Dr. Sule Yakubu Bassi, Secretary to the Commission, welcomed the initiatives with so much enthusiasm noting that the Commission is fully committed to better migration management.
Bassi describes the partnership as essential, reiterating that migration is a natural phenomenon that cannot be stopped but can be beneficial if properly managed.
“Different factors such as push factor and pull factor leads to migration, what we do is to see how we can turn it into a win-win situation by encouraging those intending, to migrate regularly so they can contribute their quota to National Development” Bassi noted.
He further urged the University to also look at means through which the Diaspora can be encouraged to maintain ties with their homeland.
“We engage with the over 20million Nigerian Diaspora by enabling them with knowledge on how to engage with Nigeria. They have the talents, resources, and global exposure which can be harnessed for national development.” Bassi added.
The Secretary elaborated on how the Commission continues to attract Nigerians back home and their investments through numerous programmes guided by the National Diaspora Policy, such as Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit (NDIS), Diaspora Investment Trust Fund, Diaspora Mortgage Scheme and the National Diaspora Merit Award amongst others.
