The Nigeria Customs Service has committed to renewing its institutional partnership with Yakubu Gowon University, formerly known as the University of Abuja, with planned support covering transportation, information and communications technology infrastructure, research facilities and student development.

Comptroller General Adewale Adeniyi disclosed this commitment during a courtesy visit by the university's Vice Chancellor, Professor Hakeem Fawehinmi, and senior principal officers to the Customs Headquarters in Maitama, Abuja.

Adeniyi acknowledged that efforts to formalise a partnership between both institutions had been in motion for several years. "I have a long institutional history with this university. During my tenure as Commandant of the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College, we made serious efforts to formalise a partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding. We went very far in the process and were close to signing, but leadership changes on both sides affected the process," he stated.

The Comptroller General noted that the Service had continued to provide support to the institution despite the delay in concluding a formal agreement. "At different times, we supported the university with transportation facilities, including the provision of a 32 seater bus. We also established a fully equipped computer centre with close to one hundred workstations. These were deliberate efforts aimed at building lasting institutional partnerships," he said.

Adeniyi emphasised that the Service would assess the new collaboration proposals with priority given to initiatives that deliver measurable outcomes. "For us, beyond legacy, what matters most is impact. We understand the realities facing Nigerian universities, from transportation challenges to infrastructure gaps. Our interest is to support initiatives that will create a conducive learning environment and positively impact students," he noted.

He added that the Service was open to a phased implementation approach where immediate execution of all projects may not be feasible, affirming interest in ensuring Abuja hosts a university that truly reflects the standing of the nation's capital.

Professor Fawehinmi, who described the Nigeria Customs Service as a key contributor to national development and federal economic reforms, noted that the university, which has an undergraduate student population of 40,000, faces growing operational and infrastructural pressures as the only conventional public university in the Federal Capital Territory.

He identified the university's Centre for Defence and Migration Studies as a strategic fit for collaboration with the Customs Service in border management, migration studies, executive training, and national security research, stressing that young Nigerians stood to benefit most from such a partnership.