No fewer than 1,500 pioneer students have graduated from the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Bauchi’s World Bank Project on Sustainable Procurement, Environment and Social Standards Enhancement.

While speaking at the graduation ceremony held at the Center’s Complex at the Gubi Campus of the University on Monday, the SPESSCE Coordinator at ATBU, Ibrahim Garba, said the programmes were introduced by the World Bank to reduce the corruption emanating from procurement, train environmental experts and social standards specialists.

“This training is for a capacity building programme to address the skills gap in procurement standards, the practice of environmental and social standards. Throughout the programme we have certified 1500 participants for part A,” he disclosed.

Garba, who is also ATBU Deputy Vice-Chancellor, explained that the training was a capacity-building programme established to address skill gaps in procurement standards, the practice of environmental standards and the application of social standards.

He added, “The training spans through tracks – track A is run for five days where participants get their certificates, track B is where participants learn within 80 hours or three to four weeks while we have track D post-graduate diploma, track E is professional and academic masters.”

He added that the programme is designed to help the people in the procurement process to be more conversant with the existing law.

“The procurement law holds the chief executive officer accountable but he doesn’t know the law. Now with this programme, we train procurement officers while we also organize a master class for chief executives,” he said.

According to him, all the courses at the Centre are run based on the License given by the National University Commission after a thorough investigation of facilities.

While congratulating the graduands, ATBU Vice Chancellor, Abdulazeez Muhammad, urged them to be good ambassadors of the Centre.

Muhammad said, “You will be our advocates out there and we believe with you as our Ambassadors we will see a lot of patronage not only in the social standards but also in the Procurement Standards as well as environmental standards.

“ATBU is your home and you are welcome anytime and when you want consultancy you don’t need to go outside. Our center is equipped to carry out Environmental and Social Impact Assessments of any magnitude. We are willing and we are ready because we have the capacity.”