APC Legacy Awareness and Campaign lists Infrastructure as priority of FG

The APC Legacy Awareness and Campaign, a voluntary think-tank group of the governing party, says the Buhari Administration is prioritizing the completion of dozens of inherited projects in the water sector; many of which had been abandoned prior to 2015.

According to a technical audit in 2016, 116 inherited projects were identified for priority completion: 37 Dams and Reservoirs, 41 Water Supply Projects, 38 Irrigation and Drainage Projects.

With the same relentless focus being applied to building and completing rail, road and aviation projects, these water sector projects are receiving increased federal attention and investment, with groundbreaking results being achieved so far.

In a press statement signed by the leaders of the group, Lanre Issa-Onilu, Ismaheel Ahmed, Tolu Ogunlesi and Salihu Lukman, it says since 2016, twelve (12) Dams have been completed by the Buhari Administration spread across eleven (11) states, as follows: Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam, Taraba; Ogwashi-Uku Multipurpose Dam, Delta; Adada Dam, Enugu; Sulma Earth Dam, Katsina; Gimi Earth Dam, Kaduna; Amla-Otukpo Dam, Benue; Amauzari Earth Dam, Imo; Ibiono-Ibom Earth Dam, Akwa Ibom; Gadau/Lafia Zigau Dam, Bauchi; Alajue Small Earth Dam, Osun; Kampe Omi Dam, Kogi (Rehabilitation) and Kargo Dam, Kaduna (Rehabilitation).

Another eight (8) dam projects, eight (8) hydropower projects, sixteen (16) irrigation projects, and eleven (11) Water Supply Projects are scheduled for completion by 2023.

Three (3) Hydropower Projects have also been completed, as follows: Gurara Hydropower Project, 30MW, Kaduna State – completed and concessioned in 2020; Kashimbila Hydropower Project, 40MW, Taraba, now ready for concessioning; and the Dadin-Kowa Hydropower Project, 40MW, Gombe, which has been completed, and is now feeding into the National Grid.

The group adds that in the area of irrigation, seven (7) projects have been fully completed, with another two partly completed (sectoral completion). In addition, thirty (30) of the forty-one (41) priority Water Supply Projects inherited by the Administration have now been completed; the very first one to be completed being the Central Ogbia Regional Water Supply Project in Bayelsa State, in September 2016, and the most recent being the Zobe and Kazaure Water Supply Projects in Katsina and Jigawa States, in July 2021.

Other completed Water Supply Projects across the country include the Northern Ishan Regional Water Supply Project and the Ojirami Dam, Water Supply Scheme and Reticulation Network, both in Edo State; Sabke, Dutsi and Mashi Water Supply Project in Katsina State; Vom Water Supply Project and Mangu Regional Water Supply Scheme in Plateau State; Takum Water Supply Project in Taraba State; Gambaki/Chinade/Hardawa/Bulkachuwa Water Supply Project in Bauchi State; Inyishi Regional Water Supply Project in Imo State; Ilobu Water Supply Scheme and Osogbo Water Supply Scheme in Osun State; Idanre Water Supply Project in Ondo State; Ofeme Water Supply Project in Abia State; Uburu Water Supply Scheme in Ebonyi State; Gashua Water Supply Scheme in Yobe State; Kwami Gadam and Bojude Water Supply Project in Gombe State; and the Saki Town Water Supply Project, Oyo State, among others.

The River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) are being revitalized under the Buhari Administration, to enable them fully serve the purpose for which they were established. These RBDAs have collectively built 42 small dams in their catchment areas, and efforts are on to collaborate with State Governments to fully utilize these dams. The RBDAs have also leased 253 farmlands to the private sector for commercial agriculture, according to the Ministry of Water Resources; 181 of these farmlands are already being fully utilized. Partial Commercialization has also commenced at four of the RBDAs, as part of the Administration’s efforts to ensure greater private sector involvement in the management and utilization of national infrastructure.

President Buhari according to the group signed Executive Order 9 on November 20, 2019, in support of the Administration’s efforts to end Open Defecation across the country.

So far, 62 Local Government Areas across 12 States of the country have been certified Open Defecation Free.

The Administration has developed a Water Sector Roadmap (2016 — 2030), that is providing inspiration and guidance for the unprecedented work in infrastructure delivery and sector reform.

Greater levels of financing are being devoted to the water resources sector, as well as increased cooperation with sub-national governments, who equally have a lot of responsibility in ensuring that the populace benefit from these infrastructure projects.

The group urges State Governments to take full advantage of the Water Supply and Irrigation Projects completed by the Federal Government, for the benefit of their communities and farmers respectively.

The Buhari Administration continues to demonstrate unprecedented commitment to the renewal and expansion of the country’s infrastructure stock, across all vital areas of the economy.

It adds that the positive effects of these investments and attention, which is starting to be seen and felt across the country, will continue to increase in intensity, laying the foundation for new jobs, for the revival of local communities, to boost agriculture and support industrialization, and ultimately for lasting growth and economic development.

The absence of these investments, until now, has been a major contributing factor to the dire socio-economic situation that the administration inherited in 2015.

By making a clean break from the past, completing abandoned critical infrastructure with determination, President Buhari according to the APC Legacy Awareness and Campaign is guaranteeing that tomorrow will be much better than today, for the vast majority of the Nigerian people.