Gov. Nasiru El-Rufai of Kaduna State, says that his administration would build a health care city in Kaduna, to offer quality health services to the people.
El-Rufai disclosed this on Tuesday in Kaduna, when he received Rev. Timothy Yahaya, the Bishop of Kaduna Anglican Diocese, who was on a courtesy visit.
He said that the health care city would be built around the National Eye Centre in Kaduna.
“We have land there and we want to encourage those who want to build hospitals, pharmacy and clinics to build there so that we have one cluster facility that would support one another,” he said.
The governor added that the idea behind the health care city was to reduce the amount being spent by Nigerians on medical tourism.
“We believe this can be done here and we have the professionals and equipments,” he added.
He said the state government was also building a 300-bed tertiary hospital to enhance access to health care services.
The governor thanked the Bishop for the visit and all the good work the Church had been doing in the services of humanity.
El-Rufai welcomed the plan by the Church to build more secondary schools and a polytechnic in the state and pledged government support to the project.
He said the state government was making efforts to provide a higher institution in each local government in the state.
“We have a plan for a multi campus structure, we are going to have more campuses of Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic,” he said.
El-Rufai said there was need for more technical training for young Nigerians to equip them to be self-reliant.
He assured of more support for farmers, to enhance agricultural activities and create jobs as the state government was working tirelessly to solve the issue of security in the state.
Earlier, the Bishop said he was at the Government House to brief the governor on the initiatives of the diocese in education, health care, agriculture, community and human capital development.
He sought for partnership with the state government in the actualisation of the projects.
Rev. Yahaya also spoke on the intervention of the Church in providing water and clinics in rural communities.
He said that the diocese was working on having a tertiary hospital and additional schools in the state.
According to him, the diocese had undertaken medical outreach programmes in which over 10,000 persons benefited.
“We do not segregate in attending to people, we believe that whatever we do, we should do it to the entirety of humanity.”
He disclosed that the Church had over 38 secondary schools across the state and planned 12 more in the next five years.
“We are building a polytechnic, not just to give certificate, but to give skills, and everyone who graduates from the polytechnic will have a job and also create jobs,” he said.(NAN)
