The dream of the country adding two more public universities to its current stock came very close to becoming a reality on Wednesday with the passage of two bills to provide the legal framework for their establishment. The two bills, the University of Health and Allied Sciences Bill, 2011 and the University of Energy and Natural Resources Bill, 2011 were laid before the House this year when Members of Parliament (MPs) were recalled from recess for some urgent business. A Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Mahama Ayariga, moved the two motions for the two bills to go through their third reading stages. His motions were seconded by the Chairman of the Education Committee of Parliament, Mr Mathias Puozaa. The University of Health and Allied Sciences will not only create and enhance access to tertiary education but also train the needed specialists in the areas of Science and Health Sciences in general which are critical to nation building. It will be sited at Sokode, near Ho in the Volta Region. The University of Energy and Natural Resources, which will be sited in Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region, will also create and enhance access to tertiary education and train specialists in energy and natural resources for national development. At Wednesday's sitting, the two bills successfully went through the second consideration stage to fine-tune some of the amendments that had been made in the original document. The Majority Leader, Mr Cletus Avoka, thanked the MPs for working hard to ensure that the two bills were passed. The Minority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said the level of co-operation and diligence exhibited by both sides of the House towards the passage of the bills was commendable. He particularly commended clerks-at-the-table for their role in facilitating the construction of the architecture of the two bills. The bills are now waiting for Presidential assent for them to become laws.