NITT Establishes Driver Development Training Centres Across States

The National Institute of Transport Technology (NITT) Zaria has said that it has established Driver Development and Training Centres across the states with a view to reducing the  frequent accidents on NIgeria’s highways.
The Director- General of the institute, Dr. Bayero Salih Farah made this known while addressing members of the Joint House and Senate Committee on Land Transport who were in the institute for a two-day oversight visit.
Farah said the centers were established across the country with a view to also train drivers on modern transport technologies and work in the centers is progressing steadily as appropriated in the 2021 budget.  
He said the institute is working towards obtaining collaborations with key stakeholders at both national and international level towards ensuring that certificates issued from the centers become globally acceptable.
The Director General said the institute sought for the support of the National Assembly to review the act establishing the institute to streamline the transport and logistics sector to further improve the economy.
“The need to review the institute’s enabling act is so pressing. If this is realized, it will enable it to carry out its responsibilities more effectively and efficiently in a rapidly changing transport world.
“The review of the act would also expand the Institute’s scope of operation and increase opportunities for revenue generation,’’ he said.
The Director-General therefore, commended the national assembly for ensuring that funds needed for the development of the institute are adequately appropriated.
In his remarks, Hon. Tajuddeen Abbas (Iyan Zazzau) and Chairman House Committee on Land Transport said the visit became imperative with the appropriation for capital projects in 2019 being N11.151bn; N5.514bn for 2020; N21.187 for 2021 and N13.215bn for 2022.
Abbas, who spoke on behalf of Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, his counterpart in the Senate, said the joint committee wants to confirm the progress it has been seeing on the paper, prepare a scorecard and come up with workable strategies.      
He said the joint committee was not on a witch-hunt mission, but to liaise with the management of the institute and work together as partners.
However, after the inspection of the completed and ongoing projects at the institute, the committee expressed satisfaction on the development.   
“We are satisfied with the development we have seen and pictures of other outreach centres, I think the management of the institution has done very well.
“It is our prayers that adequate manpower should be allocated to ensure  maximum use of the facility; maintenance should be a critical focus of the institute.”
Responding to the review of the institutes’ act, the joint committee assured the institute that it would take a double approach from the two chambers to get a faster result.
“I assure you we will do our best, so that by the end of July,  we will have the bill sent for  accent by Mr President,’’ he said.   
The committee also implored the institute to leverage on media to explore other sources of internally generated revenue towards strengthening its operations.