FG urged to build schools in Saudi

Nigerians resident in Saudi Arabia have called on the Federal Government to build primary and secondary schools there.

They made the call in Riyadh yesterday when Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo met with the Nigerian community in Saudi Arabia.

The president of the Nigerian Professional Workers and the chairman of the Nigerians Resident in Saudi Arabia, Shamsudeen Fagbo and Bashir Suleiman respectively, who made the call, said such schools would cater for Nigerians in Saudi Arabia.

A statement by Sambo’s spokesman, Umar Sani, quoted them as noting that such efforts had been made by Ghana and Mali.

They said Nigerian curriculum must be used when such schools are established and that examination bodies in Nigeria should conduct examinations there.

Responding, the vice president promised to convey their request to the government, urging them to always be good ambassadors of their country.

He assured them of the government’s readiness to partner with them in bringing development to Nigeria.

Sambo was in Saudi Arabia as the head of the Federal Government’s delegation to the award ceremony of Sheikh Ahmed Abubakar Lemu, winner of the King Faisal International Prize for Service to Islam for the year 2014 held on Sunday.

Present at the meeting included Niger State Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Abubakar Shehu Bunu and Deputy Chief of Mission Tijjani Hamman Joda.