The Presidential initiative to address the socio-economic and educational challenges as a result of insurgency in the North East has solicited for the intervention and partnership with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.
The committee was set up primarily to look for possible ways of reviving the economic status of the North East geopolitical zone.
The Minister of water Resources, Sarah Reng Ochekpe, received members of the committee chaired by the Prof. Soji Adelaja, on Monday in Abuja.
Ochekpe disclosed that the Ministry of Water Resources has lots of projects in the North East that if fully developed and put to use would turn around the fortune of the entire zone.
She said: “We have projects like South Chad Irrigation Project in Borno.
“We have several water supply schemes in Yobe.
“We have the Dakin Kowa Dam and Irrigation Projects in Gombe State.
“We also have Chouchi Irrigation Project and Jada Dam in Adamawa State.
“We also have a number of irrigation projects in Taraba State, one of which is being used by Dominion Farms.
“And we are presently constructing Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam, which has capacity for 500 million cubic meters of water, 2,000 hectares of irrigable land and forty 40 megawatts of electricity in Taraba State and this multipurpose dam will be completed by the end of 2014.
“We believe that if all these projects are completed and put to use, there would be no issue of unemployment in the region and we also believe that the health challenges associated with waterborne diseases would be properly addressed.”
As regard power components, Ochekpe said that some of the dams would provide electricity for industrial development.
She added: “The projects are at various levels of completion.
“Some of the projects have not been properly funded over the years and that is why we are willing to partner with you to complete and put the projects to use.
“We solicit that in identifying the projects, priority should be given to projects that have high impact on the people.
“It will be more economical to continue with the projects that have already been started by the Ministry than starting new water projects.”
Earlier, Adelaja said the purpose of their visit was to partner with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources to identify some projects in the water sector within the North East geopolitical zone and jointly work on them with the view to improving the economic and social status of the region.
Trending
- Yahaya Bello: Selective prosecution by EFCC unacceptable — Dele Momodu
- Lagos to residents: We won’t back down until we find solution to flooding
- Ex-Bank Manager jailed 121 years for N112m fraud
- IPI Nigeria demands immediate release of FIJ journalist
- Africa and the imperative of South Korea’s development model, by Tunde Rahman
- Education: South-west Nigeria has lost its edge!, by Abiodun Komolafe
- Metal debris hits journalist in Kano, Police promise probe
- Capital City University, Kano appoints first female registrar