Three academic staff members of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in Kaduna State, have been awarded scholarships by the Chinese Government for their Doctor of Philosophy programme in China.
They are to study at Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China.
The three academic Staff members are Idris Zubairu Sadiq, Muhammad Auwal Saliu and Rabiatu Bako Suleiman, all of the Department of Biochemistry of the university.
They were among the 20 candidates that made the 2022 awardee list of the Chinese Government Scholarship Silk Road Programme for International Students drawn from seven countries – Nigeria, Kenya, Yemen, Indonesia, Pakistan, Rwanda and Ethiopia.
In a letter, Mrs. Rui Wang, Secretary, Centre for Protein and Cell-Based Drugs, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, informed the ABU of the release of the final Ph.D. admission list and the scholarship award to the three academic staff.
Wang, who described the admission process as “lengthy and rigorous,” explained that only three candidates were admitted out of the SIAT’s recommended seven students from ABU for the programme and award of scholarship.
“This year’s admissions competition was tough, and we wish to express our gratitude to all of the applicants for giving it their all,” she said.
The Secretary thanked the Vice-Chancellor and the entire Management of ABU for taking the first step in the collaboration between ABU and Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, saying they would look forward to expanding on the relationship.
A zoom meeting between ABU and Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, took place in December last year, a development that eventually resulted in securing the Ph.D. admission and scholarship award for the three academic staff.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Kabiru Bala, led the ABU team at the zoom meeting that included Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Administration, Prof. Ahmed Doko Ibrahim; Head, Department of Computer Engineering, Prof. M.B. Mu’azu; and Head, Department of Microbiology, Prof. Maryam Aminu.
The Vice-Chancellor, at the meeting, expressed gratitude to SIAT-CAS for the presentation on the “2022 SIAT International Student and Post-Doc Program” and for inviting ABU management to take advantage of the advertised open positions.”
This was according to a statement by the ABU’s Director, Directorate of Public Affairs of the institution, Auwal Umar, obtained by The PUNCH in Kaduna on Sunday.
