FEC approves $945m loan for water, others

THE Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved three foreign loans for irrigation system, prevention of flood in Ibadan, Oyo State and provision of water for Bauchi, Ekiti and Rivers states, for $945 million.

The meeting, presided over by Vice President Namadi Sambo,  also approved four different road projects for N22 billion.

Minister of State for Finance Bashir Yuguda broke the news while briefing State House correspondents in Abuja at the end of the meeting.

He was accompanied by four ministers, including Taminu Turaki (Special Duties); Sarah Ochekpe (Water Resources); Akinwunmi Adesina (Agriculture and Rural Development); and Stephen Oru (Niger Delta Affairs).

According to Yuguda, the first of the five memoranda presented to the council by his ministry for approval was the one on the International Development Association’s credit of $495 million for proposed irrigation management.

The facility, he said, was to upscale what the Federal Government was doing in improving the irrigation system to ensure “a year-in year-out farming season”.

He said the facility has five years grace period and a repayment period of 20 years while it will attract a service charge of 0.75 per cent.

The minister also disclosed that the loan would attract an interest rate of 1.25 per cent per year and a commitment fee of 0.5 per cent per annum.

Also, Yuguda said $200 million loan was also approved by the council to check the frequent flooding in Ibadan, Oyo State.

He said:”We have all been witnessing the flood that have happened in Ibadan, the first one was in 1980 and the second one in 2011. Some remedial works were carried out to avert the future occurrence of flooding in the city. But we believe, with this credit facility of $200 million, we will be able to arrest the frequent flooding within the Ibadan city.

“The idea is to work with the Ministry of Water Resources and Ministry of Agriculture to arrest the situation,” he stated.

Another $250 million, the minister added, was approved by the council for the proposed third national urban water sector reform project.

Yuguda said the project, which would be implemented over a period of six years, has components such as water sector reform and governance, institutional framework and human capital development, sector-wide improvement and project management at the federal level.

According to him, about one million Nigerians are to benefit from the project aimed at addressing the increasing demand for water in the three states of Bauchi, Ekiti and Rivers.

Speaking further on the foreign loan for irrigation, Mrs. Ochekpe said 50,000 hectares of land would be improved for cultivation over a period of seven years.

According to her, five irrigation schemes across the country are involved in the project and major beneficiaries include the basin stakeholders, the irrigation and drainage entities and the water users’ association federation.

She added that the project was approved by the World Bank Board in June, stressing that it will be effective this month.

She said six projects have already been completed or rehabilitated in Kaduna, six in Ogun State, two in Enugu, one in Cross River, three main and seven minor projects in Lagos.

On the road sector, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs said the construction of Mbaise Ring Road intersecting Owerri-Umuahia Road in Imo State was awarded for N6.178 billion with a completion period of 18 months.

The construction of Calabar-Oban-Nsan-Okoroba-Ajassor Road in Cross River State, according to him, was awarded for N9.067 billion with a completion period of 24 months.

The other two road projects, he said, were the Phase 1 of Mbak Mkpeti-Itu-Okoita-Arochukwu Road in Abia, Cross River and Akwa Ibom awarded for N3.55billion with a completion period of 24 months.

The minister also revealed that the Mbak Atai-Ikot-Ntu-Mkpeti-Okuiboku Road in Akwa Ibom was awarded at the cost of N3.246 billion with a completion period of 18 months.