Chinese railway firm to open varsity in Nigeria

The executive president of China Railway Construction Corporation Limited, Cao Baogang told a delegation of Nigerian journalists, at its headquarters, in Beijing, yesterday, that, a university will be  built in Lagos State or Port Harcourt, Rivers State as part of its technology transfer policy.

“We want to build a college or university; either in Lagos or Port Harcourt, for training Nigerians. As in China, we have a university called Beijing Jiaotong University, Chengdu. In Nigeria, I think we need another Jiaotong university.

“We fully support technology transfer, because, in 2015, President Xi Jinping fully spoke about it. We will try our best to do that and put one in Nigeria,” Baogang said.
He, however, disclosed that the railway firm has had to contend with Boko Haram in the North.

“In 2011, Boko Haram killed some of our staff in Maiduguri, Borno and Yobe states but, we will try our best with the Federal, state local governments to get working again because security is most important for any economy to thrive.Without security, the economy cannot thrive. Railways are important for Nigeria…Funding is important and it’s a difficult time for Nigeria because of the crash in crude oil price, which is affecting availability of funds…”
Baogang said CRCC is undeterred because “Nigeria is the biggest, important market” followed by Angola, Zambia, Botswana and South Africa.

He also spoke on the Kaduna/Abuja railway project which he said was “completed in July 2016, at an estimated $850 million” and financing of new structures at Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Kaduna airports, with $1.2 billion loan from China-EXIM Bank.

On his part, Vice President of China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC), a subsidiary of CRCC, Zhang Wenjin, disclosed CRCC is the “major investor” in Lekki Free Zone and reiterated it as an “important platform for Chinese and international companies,” which, when completed, will “improve Nigeria’s industrialisation.”

Weijun added that the most important part of the Lekki Free Zone is the Deep Sea Port, of which talks with the Lagos State Government are on-going.

“Money is no problem for CRCC but infrastructure is most important. Deep Sea Port is most important for the Lekki Free Zone but, discussion has not been concluded.