The Federal Executive Council on Wednesday approved the sum of N10.7 Million as augmentation for the completion of the Middle Rima Valley Irrigation Project in Sokoto State.
Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu disclosed this while briefing State House Correspondents at the end of the weekly cabinet meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“The Federal Ministry of Water Resources presented a memo to council for the revised total cost of phase II of the construction of middle river valley irrigation project. That is the completion of the middle Rima valley irrigation project in Goronyo, Sokoto State.
“This contract was started in 1999 by the military administration then, first phase was completed, comprising 873 hectares. The phase II was started in 2007 and that is what we have been struggling to complete. It is also an inherited project.
The total scope of the phase two is 404,333 hectares out of which about 80% of the work has been done. So, this memo is seeking a revised cost of the project, with an augmentation of about N10.7 million so that we’ll be able to finish the project, hopefully before the expiration of this administration in 2023,” he said.
Adamu said the project has the potential of generating employment for almost 50, 000 people as well as enhancing food production.
“It’s expected to provide, by the time it’s completely finished, a production of 39,000 tons of rice, 195,000 tons of vegetables per annum and it will generate employment for not less than 47,000 people and their families.
“So, Council graciously approved this memo with an additional completion period of about 24 months. Like I said, our target is to try to complete this project by 2023. This is in line with what we’ve been doing since the inception of this administration in my ministry; to complete ongoing, inherited and abandoned projects,” he stated.
The Minister said out of the government’s target of completing the 116 inherited projects, 34 have so far been completed.
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