Dangote picks Ogun as Southwest pilot state for 117,000 women empowerment
• Expended N4.4bn on various community projects within Ibese cement plant
As part of the Aliko Dangote Foundation’s outreach to people of various tribes in the country with a dedicated mission to adding value to people’s lives in the core areas of health, education and economic empowerment initiatives, Ogun state has been picked as a pilot state for women empowerment in the Southwest region of the country.
Recall that Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Industries Limited had earmarked N10 billion for empowerment of women in the 774 local government areas of Nigeria and part of economic empowerment to vulnerable women across the country to either start or boost already established businesses for some states, majorly in the North, had benefited from in recent time.
But, the move to begin the disbursement of one-off, unconditional cash transfer of N10,000 each to 117,000 women in Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states started at the Dangote Cement Plant at Ibese in Ogun state on Wednesday when Joseph Alabi, Head, External Relations, Dangote Cement Plant, Ibese announced commencement of Southwest edition with 1,000 women at Ibese in Egbado North Local Government Area of Ogun state.
The choice of Ogun state as pilot state in Southwest, according to Alabi, is borne out of the fact that Dangote Industries Limited has two operational plants, namely, Ibese Dangote Cement Plant in Egbado North Local Government and Dangote Granites Mines Limited at Ajebamidele in Ijebu-igbo Local Government Area of the state.
Reeling out capital projects executed since 2011 by Dangote Group, Head of External Relations, disclosed that Dangote Industries Limited had expended N4.381 billion in the last eight years of creation in Ogun state, focusing on construction and repairs of roads, building of blocks of classrooms, construction and repairs of healthcare facilities, provision of boreholes, provision of some electricity transformers, among others.
Speaking on empowerment initiatives at Dangote Cement, Ibese skill acquisition and empowerment programme, Alabi noted that a sum of N53.1 million had been spent as scholarship and bursaries on 635 students drawn from all communities under Ibese cement plant in addition to the vocationallytrained technicians from the Dangote Academy in Obajana, Kogi state.
He added that Dangote Industries Limited had begun rice out grower programme in Ibese as part of agricultural empowerment for teeming jobless youths which will in returns, create wealth and help government fight food insecurity and deficits in balance of trade saying several socio-economic interventions were also provided during the state-declared lockdown as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also, Azad Nawabuddin, Plant Director, Dangote Cement Plant, Ibese, Ogun state, corroborated Alabi’s statements on the empowerment initiatives on education and health, saying “education is power, skill is power, that is why we are encouraging our people to be educated.
Responding on behalf of the Ogun state government, Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Kehinde Oluwadare, commended Dangote Industries Limited on their efforts to create shared value among all residents of the country irrespective of tribe, religion and political affiliations, saying it’s no news that government can’t do everything alone.
“We need to commend Alhaji Aliko Dangote for all these economic interventions, it is crystal clear that government can’t do it alone, hence, we need partnership for good governance”, he said.
In order to aid diversification of the economy, guarantee food security and create employment a National Irrigation Development Programme was initiated in 2016 as part of the Water Sector Road map
and 50% for rural water supply schemes respectively.
It is as a result of the lack of investments of the state and local governments in providing potable water to the people that the Ministry under the leadership of the of the Hon Minister introduced the PEWASH programme in 2016 and the National WASH Action Plan which led to the formal declaration of a State Emergency in the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Sector by President Buhari in November, 2018.
It is noteworthy that upon assumption of duty in 2015, the Hon Minister embarked upon Project Prioritization and Completion. A total of 116 Nos on-going and abandoned contracts/projects were inherited in 2015, made up of:
+i. Irrigation & Drainage
- 38Nos
ii. Dams & Reservoir - 37Nos iii. Water Supply
- 41Nos
Many of the projects were either abandoned or comatose because they required review of scope/cost and/ or lacked consistent funding to complete. Outstanding liabilities on these contracts stood at N 88,848,112,579.77 with total contractual commitment to completion projected at N 264,990,081,982.53.
3.2.2 Early in 2016, a Technical Audit was conducted, and all the 116 uncompleted and abandoned projects were categorized into high, medium and low priorities (Summary of Technical Audit Report is available in the Ministry)
Resources were committed towards completing and commissioning some of the high and medium priority projects between 2017-2020. Projects that were ascertained as non-viable by the Technical Audit have been cancelled or determined. So far, the following eleven (11) projects have been completed and commissioned:
• Central Ogbia Regional
Water
Project, Bayelsa State
• Northern Ishan Regional
Water
Supply Project, Edo State
• Rehabilitation of Ojirami
Dam
Water Supply Project, Edo State
• Sabke Water Supply Pro
ject,
Katsina State
• Dutsi Water Supply Proj ect, Katsina State • Mashi Water Supply Proj ect, Katsina State • Takum Water Supply Proj ect, Taraba State • Sabke Irrigation Project, Katsina State • Rehabilitation of Kargo
Dam, Jaji, Kaduna State • Ekeremor Water Supply
Project, Bayelsa, State. • Mangu Water Supply Pro ject, Plateau State • Federal University of Ag riculture, Markudi Water Supply Project, Benue State
The following five (5) projects have also been completed and are ready for commissioning.
1. Kashimbila Dam, Taraba State
2. Shagari Irrigation Project, Sokoto State
3. Galma Dam, Kaduna State.
4. Ahmadu Bello University Water Supply Project, Kaduna State.
3.3.4 Many more ongoing water supply, dam and Irrigation projects are scheduled to be completed between now and end of 2020, including the following:
Water Supply Projects
i. Inyishi Water Supply Pro ject, Imo State
ii. Zobe Water Supply Pro ject, Katsina State
iii. Ivo Water Project, Enugu State
iv. Rehabilitation and Reticu lation of Fugar Water Works, Edo State
v. Dukku Regional Water Supply Project, Gombe State
Dam & Irrigation Projects
vi. Ilesha Water Supply Pro ject, Osun State
vii. Kazaure Water Supply Project, Jigawa State viii. Otor-iyede Water Supply Project, Delta State
i. Middle Ogun Irrigation Project, Oyo State
ii. Middle Rima Valley Irriga tion Project, Sokoto State iii. Gari Irrigation Project, Kano/jigawa States iv. Kontagora Auna Dam Project, Niger State v. Bagwai Irrigation Project, Kano State
vi. Tada Shonga Irrigation Project, Kwara State vii. Adani Rice Irrigation Pro ject, Anambra State viii. Ekuku Dam Project, Kogi State
ix. Lower Anambra Irrigation Project, Anambra State
x. Ile – Ife Dam Project, Osun State
xi. Otukpo Multipurpose Dam Project, Benue State.
Irrigation
3.3.1 Nigeria has about 3.14 million Ha of land suitable for irrigation. However, only 128,097Ha has been developed as at 2015 and about 50,000 Ha of the developed area was lost to failed infrastructure and poor operations and maintenance. The current annual water demand for irrigation in wet and dry seasons including Fadama lands is about 1.926 BCM which translates to about 0.7% of our national internally generated potential. This indicates how much the country has been under utilizing its irrigation potentials.
In order to aid diversification of the economy, guarantee food security and create employment a National Irrigation Development Programme was initiated in 2016 as part of the Water Sector Road map. It is aimed to accomplish the following: i. Establish additional 100,000Ha of irrigated farmland by 2020 and achieve a total of 500,000Ha by 2030. ii. An additional 1,000,000Ha of irrigable land to be developed by the private sector and State Governments by 2030.
Current efforts will en able delivery of 41,000Ha by end of 2019.
Details of the status of ongoing Irrigation Projects is contained in the Department of Irrigation and Drainage Report, Volume 2.
3.3.3 The World Bank is supporting the implementation of Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria Project (TRIMING) with a credit facility of Us$495million. The Project involves rehabilitation/expansion of about 42,000Ha of irrigation land under the first phase, to be completed by 2022, as follows: I. Bokolori Irrigation Pro ject (Work commenced in 2017) - 13,500 Ha
II. Kano River Irrigation Project (Contractor com menced --- in early 2019) - 14,400 Ha
III. Hadejia Valley Irrigation
Project, Construction commenced following the Flag off by President Muhammadu Buhari on 14th May, 2018) – 6,000 Ha
IV. Dadin Kowa Irrigation
Project (Procurement process has commenced) – 3,000 Ha
V. Middle Rima Irrigation Project (Studies nearing completion) – 5,000 Ha
It is worthy of note to reiterate that the National Water Resources Bill presently at the NASS is not a new law; rather it is an amalgamation of Water Resources Laws that have been in existence as enshrined in LFN 1`2004. These Laws are:
a. Water Resources Act, Cap W2 LFN 2004, the River Basin Development Authority Act, Cap R9 LFN 2004, b. the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (Estab lishment) Act, Cap N1100A.LFN, 2004 and c. National Water Resources Institute Act, Cap N83 LFN 2004.
These Laws are being re- enacted with necessary modifications in the new Bill to actualize current global trends and best practices in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). The overall objective is geared towards efficient management of the Water Resources Sector for the economic development of Nigeria and the well-being of its citizens.
In conclusion, I would urge Nigerians to join hands with FG and work together to achieve National growth for the benefit of every Nigerian. The Ministry is poised to consolidate on past gains to set the water sector on the path of enviable growth and development in line with global best practices.