About 17 Nigerian Universities have reportedly been approved to receive the sum of $70m under the World Bank Africa Centres of Excellence project.

The grant according to Punch is meant to conduct researches on infectious diseases, tropical diseases and reproductive health in Africa.

The National Universities Commission (NUC) announced this development in a statement signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Ibrahim Yakasai.

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According to the NUC, the universities that are going to benefit from the World Bank funded project include Ahmadu Bello University, Redeemers’ University, Bayero University, Obafemi Awolowo University, University of Benin, University of Port Harcourt, University of Lagos, Lagos State University, University of Nigeria, and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri.

The Commission said, “West and Central African countries, with support from the World Bank, unveiled the regional Africa Higher Education Centres of Excellence in 2014. The project is focused on scaling up postgraduate education and applied researches that are fundamental to the economic growth of the region. The supported universities should meet the global standards for quality of education, recruit students across the region and collaborate with other African Universities.”

Recall that World Bank recently selected some Nigerian Universities as Centre of Excellence