The Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has advocated a better
\nfunding process for projects being executed by the Niger Delta Development
\nCommission, NDDC, to facilitate their speedy completion.<\/p>\n
Dr. Okowa made the call yesterday when the NDDC Acting Managing Director,
\nMrs. Ibim Semenitari, led a team of the Commission\u2019s management to pay him
\na courtesy visit at Government House, Asaba.<\/p>\n
The Governor commended NDDC for completing several projects in Delta state
\nand advised that the budgetary process of the interventionist agency
\nneeded to be reviewed. He said this was necessary to ensure that projects
\nwere adequately provided for in its annual budgets, in order to bridge
\nfunding gaps.<\/p>\n
Dr. Okowa said that it was good to see the directors of the NDDC going
\nround to inspect projects because, apart from helping to stir up the
\ncontractors, it was also necessary for proper planning. \u201cUntil you
\nunderstand what is on ground and the extent of the challenges, you may not
\nbe in a position to put together a budget or have a good financial
\nprojection,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He commended the NDDC for emphasizing collaboration among the various
\nstakeholders in the Niger Delta, saying: \u201cIt is quite important that we
\ntake note of this and I am aware that we have a Niger Delta Regional
\nDevelopment Master Plan facilitated by the NDDC. The need for partnership
\ncannot be over-emphasized. It is very important for the NDDC and the
\nstates to share information on projects to avoid cases of duplications.\u201d<\/p>\n
In her address, the NDDC Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Semenitari, said
\nthat the Commission had initiated about 28 regional projects and over 650
\nother projects across the 25 local government areas of Delta State.<\/p>\n
She said the Commission is implementing projects such as bridges,
\nshoreline protections, roads, water boreholes, rural electrification,
\nsolar-powered lights, skill acquisition and health centres, among others.<\/p>\n
Mrs. Semenitari also revealed that the social sector is not left behind.
\n\u201cWe recently donated Lassa fever materials and equipment to the State
\nMinistry of Health as part of our fight against Lassa fever,\u201d she stated,
\nadding: \u201cOnly last week, we had the finals of our programme geared towards
\nencouraging our young daughters to embrace the future by looking at
\nengaging in STEM-related careers. While I must applaud the Delta State
\nMinistry of Education\u2019s support for this programme, it is our desire that
\nour states work with us better to encourage much laudable projects.\u201d<\/p>\n
The NDDC boss revealed that in the course of her inspection of projects in
\nseveral communities, she had been confronted by the poverty of delivery on
\nstandards, stating that things should not continue in that manner. \u201cThe
\nnew NDDC is determined to truly make a difference, and we invite you, as a
\nmajor stakeholder, to kindly work with us to achieve the goal,\u201d she said<\/p>\n
Mrs. Semenitari said it was important to build a more engaging and robust
\ncooperation and collaboration among all stakeholders, \u201cfrom communities to
\nthe civil society organizations, from companies and agencies operating in
\nthe Niger Delta (local and international) to governments at all levels. At
\nthe heart of the change agenda of the Federal Government, which
\nestablished the NDDC, is the imperative to build partnerships that improve
\nprocesses, quicken project, programme and service delivery, as well as
\nreduce overall cost.\u201d<\/p>\n
She noted that for success to be guaranteed, it was important for all
\nstakeholders to unite under one unimpeachable vision, adding that the
\nNiger Delta Regional Development Master Plan, which the NDDC facilitated,
\nprovided such a platform.<\/p>\n
She stated Delta State offered great opportunities for collaboration,
\nparticularly in agriculture and aquaculture. She said: \u201cThe administration
\nof President Buhari is determined to encourage food production and
\nagro-allied business and a lot can be achieved when we work together in
\nthese areas. Being close to the great market of Onitsha puts Delta state
\nin a special place, because farmers and processing concerns can find ready
\nbusiness.\u201d<\/p>\n
She called on Delta state to also take over eight health centres which the
\nCommission constructed in the state as part of its efforts to improve the
\nhealth of citizens in the Niger Delta. \u201cThese had been completed,\u201d she
\nsaid, \u201cwith two of them fully equipped, including with ambulances and
\nincubators for neo-natal care.\u201d<\/p>\n
She appealed to the governor to direct the State Ministry of Health to
\ntake over the health centres in the spirit of partnership and asked the
\ngovernment to also take over the fully constructed and equipped ICT skill
\nacquisition and training centre in Patani.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has advocated a better funding process for projects being executed by the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, to facilitate their speedy completion.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39177,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n