Sokoto State University has appealed to the Sokoto State Government to approve the recruitment of additional academic staff to support the institution’s planned expansion into new faculties and academic programmes, a move aimed at strengthening teaching, research and students’ access to quality higher education.
The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Muhammad Bello Yarima, made the appeal during the university’s combined fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth convocation ceremonies in Sokoto. He explained that the institution has experienced significant academic growth since its establishment in 2009 and now requires more qualified lecturers to sustain its expanding programmes.
According to the Vice-Chancellor, the university has grown from three pioneer faculties to five and is awaiting approval from the National Universities Commission (NUC) to commence 22 additional academic programmes. Once approved, the expansion is expected to increase the number of faculties to between eight and nine.
Professor Yarima noted that the proposed programmes include Software Engineering, Cybersecurity, Engineering, Medical Sciences and Nursing. He explained that these courses are designed to respond to emerging national manpower needs while providing students with opportunities in high-demand professional fields.
He stressed that expanding academic offerings without a corresponding increase in qualified lecturers would place additional pressure on existing staff and could affect the quality of teaching and research. For this reason, he urged the state government to approve fresh recruitment to meet the university’s growing academic responsibilities.
Beyond academic expansion, the Vice-Chancellor disclosed that the university has introduced a monthly public lecture series to encourage intellectual engagement, knowledge sharing and research among staff, students and the wider community.
He also revealed plans to establish a Centre of Excellence for Solid Mineral Research, describing solid minerals as an important sector for Nigeria’s economic diversification. According to him, the university is already engaging institutions in India and China to secure technical support, specialised equipment and training for the proposed centre.
Professor Yarima further acknowledged the contributions of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) to the university’s development, noting that the intervention agency has supported infrastructure development, research activities and staff training programmes in countries including the United Kingdom, Malaysia and India.
He also commended the Sokoto State Government for sustaining its policy of automatic employment for first-class graduates. According to him, four recent first-class graduates have already been recruited into various faculties, strengthening the institution’s academic workforce while encouraging excellence among students.
During the convocation, the university announced that 42 students graduated with first-class honours, while thousands of others received degrees across the Faculties of Arts, Computing, Education, Science and Social Sciences. The ceremony marked the institution’s first combined convocation after clearing a backlog of ceremonies from previous academic sessions.
Responding to the university’s requests, Governor Ahmed Aliyu reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to strengthening higher education in the state. He highlighted ongoing investments in staff welfare, salary improvements, renovation of staff quarters and the construction of a sports complex, assuring the university of continued government support in its drive to become one of Nigeria’s leading institutions of higher learning.
