The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and Yakubu Gowon University (formerly University of Abuja) have pledged to strengthen partnership aimed at improving learning, research, and student development.
The commitment was made when the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, hosted the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Hakeem Fawehinmi, and its principal officers at the Customs Headquarters, Maitama, Abuja, on Tuesday.
Speaking during the engagement, CGC Adeniyi recalled his long-standing institutional relationship with the university, noting that efforts to establish a formal partnership between both institutions date back several years.
“I have a long institutional history with this university. During my tenure as Commandant of the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College, we made serious efforts to formalise a partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding. We went very far in the process and were close to signing, but leadership changes on both sides affected the process,” he said.
Adeniyi affirmed that despite the delay, the Service had maintained its support for the institution over the years through strategic interventions.
“At different times, we supported the university with transportation facilities, including the provision of a 32-seater bus. We also established a fully equipped computer centre with close to one hundred workstations. These were deliberate efforts aimed at building lasting institutional partnerships.”
He assured the university management that the Service would carefully examine the new areas of collaboration presented during the visit, with emphasis on projects capable of delivering meaningful impact.
“For us, beyond legacy, what matters most is impact. We understand the realities facing Nigerian universities, from transportation challenges to infrastructure gaps. Our interest is to support initiatives that will create a conducive learning environment and positively impact students.”
The CGC also expressed the Service’s readiness to work with the university through a phased implementation model, as needed, saying, “If there are multiple projects and we are unable to execute everything at once, we can adopt a phased approach and focus on priority areas that will make the greatest difference.”
He further emphasised the importance of having a university in the nation’s capital that reflects the status and identity of the Federal Capital Territory, “It is important for us to have a university in Abuja that truly reflects the status of Nigeria’s capital. I am willing to work with you in that regard.”
Earlier, Professor Fawehinmi commended CGC Adeniyi and the NCS for their contributions to national development, describing the Service as one of the institutions supporting the Federal Government’s economic and governance reforms.
“We have come with the highest level of leadership of the university to congratulate you and appreciate the tremendous work being done by the Nigeria Customs Service under your leadership,” he stated.
The Vice-Chancellor explained that the visit was also aimed at exploring areas of strategic partnership between the two institutions, noting that the university, with undergraduate student population of nearly 40,000, faces growing operational and infrastructural demands.
“As the only conventional public university in the Federal Capital Territory, we face enormous responsibilities. Support in areas such as mass transit buses, ICT infrastructure, research facilities, and professional collaboration will significantly strengthen our capacity.”
He also identified the university’s Centre for Defence and Migration Studies as a potential area of partnership with the Service in border management, migration studies, executive training and national security research.
“We are ready to partner with the Nigeria Customs Service. The real beneficiaries of such collaboration will be young Nigerians who represent the future leadership of this country,” he added.
