Governor Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa on Friday announced that he has sent 160 students to Sudan to study medicine with the ultimate aim to widen the manpower gap in the state’s health sector.

This was contained in a statement issued by the governor’s media aide, Habibu Kila, in Dutse.

Addressing the 160 students shortly before their departure on Thursday, the governor charged them to give their best in Sudan.

“It is in fulfilment of this objective that the government embarked on the massive improvement of all basic healthcare facilities in every political ward of the state,” a statement by the Jigawa government noted. “We will ensure that no political ward is left without one.”

Recall that in 2016, 60 students from the state who met the requirements in their Senior Secondary School Examination (SSCE) were sent to China to study “clinical medicine after rigorous screenings.”

According to Kila, the 60 students had completed the course and are now back in Jigawa hospitals undergoing their internship.

“This is as a prerequisite for the fulfilment of the conditions of their medical training. Governor Badaru has expressed satisfaction with the quality of the training they acquired from the Chinese universities,” the statement added.

The 160 students comprise 60 males, and 100 females will attend various Sudanese universities.

“In a memorable event at the Government House, Dutse, Governor Badaru reaffirmed that the purpose of sending the students to Sudan was to continue filling the ever-widening manpower gap in the health sector,” the Jigawa explained. “He, therefore, urged the students to be good ambassadors of the state by studying hard to excel in their studies. They should ensure that at the end of their course, they will render selfless service to their communities so as to overcome the health challenges in the state.”

The governor also reminded them that, as potential doctors, their primary duty was to save lives and treat patients with all the seriousness that that profession demands.