The Sokoto State government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Sudan-based company, Bunian Agency for General Services Co. Ltd, in order to ensure that the welfare of its students studying in the country is catered for adequately.
The MoU, signed by Saidu Umar, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), on behalf of the state government, and Nuradden Adam Ibrahim, director-general of Bunian, on behalf of the company, also focused on the deepening of diplomatic ties between Sokoto State and Sudan in the areas of educational pursuit, commerce and agriculture, among others, through the instrumentality of the company.
Speaking at the ceremony held at the Council Chamber of Government House, Sokoto, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal said the agreement follows his recent visit to Sudan Republic last month.
He said during the visit, he and his delegation interacted with the indigenes of the state studying there in order to see how best the state government could assist them.
In the process of the interaction, he said, the delegation realized that there were issues with the agents hitherto representing the state government on the affairs of the students, noting that they were not doing well in handling the affairs of the students.
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As a result, the governor explained, the state government decided to collaborate with the family of Maiwurno of Sudan, descendants of Shehu Usmanu Danfodio, progenitor of the Islamic reawakening movement in the 18th century, in order to link the state with a reputable company that will serve as an agent that would assist it in addressing the challenges being faced in the handling of its students’ affairs.
Gov. Tambuwal further explained that in the course of engaging the royal family, the state also involved the Sudan-based company in the process and decided that there were no other people to look after the students than their brothers resident in the country.
He pointed out that the engagement offered the state the opportunity of reconnecting, officially, with the Sultanate of Maiwurno in Sudan in order to strengthen the historic relationship between it and the Sokoto Caliphate.
In his address, Mustapha Ballah, representative of Sultan Maiyirno of Sudan, promised the state government that the royal family would discharge its duty effectively.
Ballah, who also holds the traditional title of Sardaunan Maiwurno, expressed appreciation to the Sokoto State government for making the diplomatic engagement a reality, assuring it of the family’s total support and cooperation in order to achieve the desired objectives.
