Category: Special Report

Stakeholders in Africa met in Cairo, Egypt to examine the progress in the reconstruction, rehabilitation and development of crossborder infrastructure across the continent, Assistant Editor Bola Olajuwon, who was there, reports.

AFRICAN leaders and experts at different fora have underscored the essence of building massive national, regional and intercontinental infrastructure to connect countries within the continent with each other to enhance development, free movement of people and trading. To achieve this dream, during the 18th ordinary session of the African Union (AU) Summit, African Heads of State and Government adopted Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) as a strategic framework for regional infrastructure. Since its inception in 2015, PIDA Week has evolved and grown to become the flagship advocacy and marketing event for infrastructure growth in the continent. It was formed to drive Africa’s aspirations for infrastructure growth in line with Agenda 2063. The annual event aims to promote the effective delivery of infrastructure on the continent, a key cornerstone for Africa’s development and to foster connections between infrastructure and multi-sectoral development. The 2019 edition held in Cairo, Egypt, did not disappoint on the threshold set since assumption of the week.

The event was attended by ministers, leaders and officials and delegates from organising and partners institutions, the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD), the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the other African Union member states.

Others include the Regional Economic Communities, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the United Nations, Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the German Cooperation, the European Union (EU), the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), private sector representatives, other distinguished invitees and members of the media. In all, no fewer than 700 delegates from across the continent and beyond attended this year’s PIDA Week, which was held under the theme: “Positioning Africa to deliver on Agenda 2063 and economic integration through multi-sectoral approaches to infrastructure development”.

The rationale behind the week

In his opening remarks at the event, Dr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, Chief Executive Officer of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), who spoke on the rationale behind PIDA Week and its objective, said the programme and its associated instruments have enabled the continent to make remarkable progress in the reconstruction, rehabilitation and development of infrastructure.

He noted that African countries need greater regional and cross-border integration as well as cooperation to bridge the continent’s infrastructure needs put at between $130–$170 billion a year. The financing gap for the required infrastructure needs was put at between $68–$108 billion.

According to Mayaki, progress has been registered over the entire landscape of infrastructure – from hardware developments on road and railway transport, power – including renewable energy, and ICT, to software enhancements in regulatory practices and regimes, policies, systems – such as one-stop border post monitoring systems, and human skills and capacities.

He said: “This is not another conference, not another ordinary week. This is for you, stakeholders in the Infrastructure development space, to own and significantly contribute to change the lives of millions of Africans. As this responsibility has been bestowed upon us, we shouldn’t take this lightly when we engage in the various sessions throughout the week.”

Through the transformation involved by PIDA, Mayaki said Africa’s geography is changing “and the borders are fading more and more, contributing to building stronger ties between countries through trade, and therefore making them see the economic costs of war with their neighbouring countries. PIDA humbly contributes, to foster peace and change the landscape of Africa”.

Financing of cross-border infrastructure projects and public-private partnership

On the fringe of the week-long conference, the AU and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) at Continental Business Network (CBN) meeting urged African countries to boost investments in cross-border infrastructure projects to drive continental integration and growth.

According to Mayaki, financing of cross-border infrastructure projects “is a key driver for progress and acceleration of Africa’s regional integration”. The AUDA-NEPAD chief also emphasised that a stronger public-private partnership could hasten the investment in these regional projects. Mayaki argued that the significance of cross-border infrastructure projects was to spur regional integration in Africa. He listed some of the achievements of some African countries in areas of undertaking such projects.

Some of such infrastructure projects, according to him, are Abidjan – Grand Bassam Missing Road Links Upgrade Road Côte d’Ivoire (30%); Abidjan – Lagos Corridor Highway – Upgrade Road between Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria and Togo (65%); Agona Junction – Alubo Road (17%); Elubo/ Noe One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) (30%); Godomey – Pahou Road (22%); and Hillacondji-Sanveekondji OSBP -Upgrade Border Post between Benin and Togo (57%).

Other projects are Kraké/ Sémé Badagry – upgraded border post between Benin and Nigeria; Noépé OSBP Upgrade Border Post between Ghana and Togo (43%); Ouidah/Hillacondji/Sanveekondji in Togo (43%) and Abidjan – Ouagadougou Narrow Gauge Railway (Burkina Fasso section); the Ruzizi III Hydropower Dam on the Ruzizi River along the borders of Democratic Republic of Congo (the DRC), Burundi and Rwanda, and the Nigeria-Algeria Gas Pipeline Project (Trans-Sahara Gas Pipeline).

The AUDA-NEPAD chief said more than 60 per cent of infrastructure projects in Africa are funded publicly, stressing that the know-how that was built-in financing national projects could be leveraged in financing regional projects. Also, data from the UNECA show that “infrastructure development in Africa can potentially raise GDP by two per cent and develop the backbone for rapid industrialisation, boosting the capacity to generate more domestic resources”. The continent was also urged to augment the investments in infrastructure development in Africa to achieve major continental development aspirations. But investment experts from Africa and their counterparts from development partners weighed the possibility of sourcing about $500 billion from pension funds. This is aim at bridging the revenue gap available to the continent’s governments to develop infrastructure projects.

The idea behind the new thinking is to increase funding of infrastructure projects from 1.4 per cent to five per cent by cornering pension funds to “a pipeline of bankable projects”. The experts also looked into the possibility of getting funding from the national sovereign funds.

PAP1 of the continental agenda

Under PAP1 of the continental agenda, the AU body focused on over 400 projects, including 54 energy projects (hydropower plants and interconnectors), 236 transport projects,114 for the ICT sector and nine transboundary water projects. The energy projects include 10 hydropower plants of over 22 gigawatts capacity, notably the Inga-3, which is under negotiation for financing and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which is under construction. The infrastructure projects identified in PIDA require investments of $360 billion by 2040.

Of the $81.6 billion invested, 42.1 per cent came from national governments, 23.8 per cent came from China, and 24.1 per cent came from bilateral donors, multilateral agencies and African institutions. The private sector accounted for just 2.8 per cent. However, Robert Lisinge, Chief of Energy, Infrastructure and Services Section at the ECA, emphasised the importance of harmonising policies, laws and regulations relating to infrastructure investment.

A representative of the African Import-Export Bank noted that the bank has been working on capacity building, and de-risking mechanism, which is key to unlocking capital. The bank is working with 51 out of the 54 member states to enhance funding for infrastructure projects. The representative of the European Union (EU), Mrs. Carla Montesi, reaffirmed the commitment of the EU in supporting Africa’s regional economic integration and infrastructure growth. Motensi said the EU has provided one billion euro for energy, transport and ICT development projects per year in the past last seven years. The need to bridge the financing gap is still present, she said.

More work to be done

The AU-NEPAD CEO, however, warned that more work has to be done in building and financing more cross-border infrastructure. Mayaki said as part of the infrastructural gap, the African Development Bank estimates that more than 640 million Africans have no access to energy, giving an electricity access rate for African countries at just over 40 per cent — the world’s lowest. “Per capita consumption of energy in Sub- Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) is 180 kWh, against 13,000 kWh per capita in the United States and 6,500 kWh in Europe. He reminded delegates of the importance of accountability and political will to transform Africa’s infrastructure.

Taking PIDA programmes to the next stage: PIDA II

In the course of the one week, many sessions were also held to drive the continent’s infrastructure growth and they included a session on: “Energy Frameworks and Initiatives contributing to PIDA PAP 2: Harmonised Regulatory Framework of Electricity Market in Africa” and “African Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI)”. The rapporteur for the session was Ahid Maeresera. AREI is a transformative initiative founded and led by Africa to accelerate, intensify and use the continent’s huge potential in renewable energy sources. The initiative focuses on developing integrated solutions in increasing access to clean energy services, improving human well-being and putting African countries on the path to sustainable and climate-friendly development.

At the launch of the initiative in 2015, AREI sought to achieve 10GW renewable energy generation capacity by 2020 and at least 300GW by 2030. Given that the renewable energy sector is fast-moving in terms of technology, costs or business models, the session declared that there was an urgent need to act in a united, concrete and pragmatic way to realise its set objectives.

The session through a presentation outlined the AREI Vision as an African policy initiative for Africa by Africans; a forum where Africa meets around Renewable Energy and where Africa shares its experience and success stories; a platform where Africa defines Renewable Energy goals and plans for its future sustainable development through provision of clean energy; and a conduit through which African countries and Renewable Energy developers can find advice, support and solutions.

Other sessions included “Partners Energy Initiatives Toward PIDA PAP 2; “Sustainable Energy Investments (SEI) Platform”; “AEEP Renewable Energy Projects in PIDA PAP 2”; “New energy projects: Solar, Small Hydro, and the Small Island States.

Also included were: “The PIDA Quality Label: Bridging the gap between infrastructure project sponsors and PPFs; “PIDA Job Creation Toolkit: Breaking Barriers to Create Local Employment through Infrastructure (Launch of the PIDA Job Creation Toolkit)”; “Infrastructure Financing Trends in Africa”; and “Managing Risk to encourage private sector engagement and investment in infrastructure development.

On “Managing Risk to encourage Private Sector Engagement and Investment in Infrastructure Development”, the session’s message was that the demand for infrastructure finance is far greater than supply and that the private sector still invests less in Africa’s infrastructure relative to other geographical regions. The reason for this, it noted, is the real or perceived “Risk/Return” profile of the African infrastructure assets relative to other regions or other assets within Africa competing for private sector investment. This session drew synergy from Session 8: “Infrastructure Financing Trends in Africa” that provided evidence of private sector contributions to infrastructure and the trends for the last 10 years.

The delegates also discussed “Common African strategy for infrastructure partnerships with non-African countries and organisations”. The launch of the African Network for Women in Infrastructure (ANWIn) was also held during the event.

Recommendations       

At the end of the one-week event, the delegates said infrastructure development should serve for social and industrial development across the continent. All the economic sectors, they said, should be considered through a multi-sector approach of infrastructure development as framed in the PIDA PAP 2 Integrated Corridor approach. They harped on harmonisation and coordination with a bottom-up approach, which they said it’s critical to delivering the Agenda 2063 goal of world-class infrastructure crisscrossing Africa. The gathering said rationalisation is important as most of the continent’s infrastructure from colonial-era were guided by extractive goals. Therefore, they noted that the inclusive dimension of PIDA process is welcomed and should be supported.

According to the delegates, infrastructure development across Africa is multi-sectorial challenged and hence solutions must be multi-sectorial. The gathering noted that infrastructure development should serve for social and industrial development across the continent.

They, therefore, reaffirmed the crucial role of PIDA in the achievement of the main goals of the AU Agenda 2063 for continental integration, prosperity and peace; reiterated commitment to developing integrated and efficient systems through the application of sound policies and development strategies to enhance efficiency, sustainability and affordability of transport, energy, ICT and water services, in line with AU Agenda 2063 and Sustainable Development Goals.

The delegates acknowledged the diligent work accomplished during 2019, which was presented in the PIDA Annual Implementation report; and took note with appreciation of the detailed status reports and updates on the projects presented during the week and also welcomed the revival of the involvement of African and international private sector, the academia as well as partners to promote technical and financial contribution to PIDA projects. The attendees encouraged AUC, AUDA-NEPAD, AfDB and UNECA in partnership with other stakeholders, and financial institutions to pursue the mobilisation of funding for the complete implementation of the PIDA projects and called upon African Union member states, development partners and members of the Continental Business Network (CBN) to provide adequate resources for the PIDA project preparation facilities: the PIDA Service Delivery Mechanism (SDM) and the NEPAD Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility (NEPAD- IPPF), among others.

PROJECTS

• Abidjan-Grand Bassam Missing Road Links Upgrade Road Côte d’Ivoire (30%)
• Abidjan – Lagos Corridor Highway – Upgrade Road between Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria and Togo (65%);
• Agona Junction – Alubo Road (17%) Elubo/ Noe One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) (30%)

Godomey – Pahou Road (22%); and Hillacondji-Sanveekondji OSBP -Upgrade Border Post between Benin and Togo (57%)

In continuation of its winning streaks, The Nation on Sunday night scooped eight honours at the Nigeria Media Merit Awards (NMMA), writes PRECIOUS IGBONWELUNDU.

With a haul of eight honours, 18 nominations in 17 categories, The Nation on Sunday night proved its mettle at the 27th Nigerian Media Merit Awards (NMMA).

At the event, held at the Muson Centre in Onikan, Lagos State, this newspaper beat The Punch in the Prize for Editorial Writing of the Year.

Vintage Press Limited Chairman Wale Edun congratulated the winners.

He said: “I want to heartily congratulate the eight worthy award winners, on their fantastic achievements. Such acclamation and recognition is becoming something of a noble tradition at The Nation. Nonetheless it is never to be taken for granted; we should celebrate!”

This year’s NMMA featured 37 categories in print and six each for radio and television.

Deputy Editor Emmanuel Oladesu’s report “The big contest” won the Lateef Jakande Prize for Political Reporter. Correspondent Precious Igbonwelundu was runner up with her entry “Conflicting…as National Assembly moves to endorse the creation of state police.”

Multiple awards winner Sina Fadare beat Vanguard and Nigerian Tribune nominees in the 9Mobile Prize for Innovative Reporter of the Year with his story “The magic of smokeless coal.” His report “Beekeeping: Gateway to wealth creation and good health” was runner up in the Bukola Saraki Prize for Agriculture Reporter of the Year, won by Ebhuomhan Sebastine of Daily Independent.

Fadare was recently appointed as Editor of Yoruba newspaper in the Vintage Press Limited stable – Gbelegbo.

With his report “Revealed: How N600m SURE-P funds for tourism were misappropriated,” Innocent Duru floored two entrants from New Telegraph to clinch the Adamu Mu’azu Prize for Tourism Reporter of the Year.

Capital Market Editor Taofik Saloko’s “Multiple Subscriptions: Amnesty for ‘ghost’ shareholders” was the judges’ favourite for the Access Bank Prize for Capital Market Reporter of the Year and Daniel Eshiet won the Coca Cola Nigeria Prize for Brand and Marketing Reporter of the Year with his report “Nigeria’s bourgeoning diabetes drug business.”

Assistant Editor Gboyega Alaka’s investigative piece “Shina Rambo is dead! Pastor who claims to be Shina Rambo is fake” won the coveted Ernest Sisei Ikoli Prize for Newspaper Reporter of the Year and Medinat Kanabe was crowned the NMMA Female Reporter of the year with her story “Anyone can be victim of maternal mortality.”

Prolific sports writer Alimi Taiwo was a finalist in the Bashorun MKO Abiola sports reporting category which former New Telegraph’s Deputy Sports Editor Dapo Sotuminu clinched; Energy Editor Emeka Ugwanyi was runner up in the Peter Odili Prize for Power Reporter won by Ujah Emmanuel of Vanguard. Ugwuanyi was also runner up in the Chevron Nigeria Prize for Oil and Gas Reporter which Juliana Francis of the New Telegraph won.

Assistant Editor Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie’s report “ECOWAS protocol under xenophobia threat” was runner up in the Olusegun Mimiko Prize for Foreign News Reporter; Money Market Correspondent Collins Nweze was runner up in two categories: Sonny Odogwu Prize for Business Reporter of the Year, and Union Bank Prize for Banking and Finance Reporter. Industry Correspondent Oluwakemi Dauda was finalist in the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) Prize for Maritime Reporter of the Year.

This newspaper has consistently lived true to its mandate of “truth in defence of freedom,” parading an array of seasoned professionals.

The Nation won the NMMA Newspaper of the Year in 2018 with four other awards, emerging runner up in 16 categories. In 2017, this newspaper’s reporters clinched 10 of the 29 prizes up for grabs in the print media category, leaving seven other newspapers to share the remaining 19.

This year, The Punch had seven wins, including the Babatunde Jose Prize for Newspaper of the Year, which it contested with The Guardian and Daily Trust; Alade Odunewu Prize for Columnist of the Year (Adelakun Abimbola); Cecil King Memorial Prize for Print Journalist of the year (Samson Folarin), Photographer of the Year (Obasa Olatunji) and MTN Prize for Telecommunications Reporter of the Year (Ogunfunwa Adedoyin). It had 18 nominations in 13 categories.

With record 34 nominations in 24 categories, New Telegraph clinched 10 awards; The Guardian got five awards, including the Dele Giwa Prize for Editor of the Year; Vanguard won three and The Sun won one.

Other winners at the event were Tony Okuyeme whose story “High expectations amid disquiet over national theatre” won the Olu Aboderin Prize for Entertainment Reporter; Isioma Madike’s entry “The dying culture of giving first salary to parents,” won Olagunsoye Oyinlola Prize for Culture & Tradition; Dorothy Orakpo won the Ibrahim Shekarau Prize for Education Reporter with the story “Deepening rot in education sector triggers alarm”; China Abanobi won the Olusegun Mimiko Prize for Foreign News Reporter with “Flipside of the American dream” and Princewill Ekwujuru’s “Divergent views in debate over relevance of CSR” got the Keystone Bank Prize for CSR reporter.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel’s “Agony of residents sacked by flood” was adjudged winner of the NAFCON Environment Reporter category; Adeola Yusuf won Conoil Prize for Energy Correspondent with entry “The big power scandal” and Yekeen Nurudeen’s story “Plastic recycling plants: how Nigeria’s 392m investment on project end up in ruins” clinched the Sonny Odogwu Prize for Business Reporter of the Year.

Also, Chijoke Jideofor emerged winner of IGI prize for Insurance Reporter; Babatunde Ajaja won NPA Prize for Maritime Reporter; Olasunkanmi Akoni received the prize for Real Estate/Construction reporting; Emenike Chukuwuemeka won Nnamdi Azikiwe prize for Cartoonist of the year, Akinfenwa Olugbenga got the Alex Ibru Prize for Investigative Reporting, Bertram Nwannekanma was announced winner of the Abubakar Imam Prize for Newspaper Features Writer and Mike Ebonugwo won the Gani Fawehinmi Prize for Human Rights Reporter.

Award Committee Chairman Prof. Ralph Akinfeleye said there was no winner for the Buba Marwa Prize for Defence Reporting because the nominations were below the 70 per cent cut-off.

He urged editors to be meticulous in editing copies to minimise errors, and encouraged media practitioners to uphold the tenets of the profession.

With the purchase of two unmanned aerial vehicles for carrying out digital mapping of the whole state within a short time, experts say the improved geo-spatial data generated from this cutting-edge technology will ultimately help Lagos to improve planning and social services delivery, reports Associate Editor ADEKUNLE YUSUF.

Like many other fast-growing cities in the world, Lagos faces one composite challenge: limitless opportunities in the heart of crumbling infrastructure, which seems to stand against the state’s vast development prospects. Faced with how to cope with the burden of rapidly rising population, the country’s bustling commercial capital has become a conundrum of sorts, prompting growing demands for better and more efficient social services by over 20 million people resident in Lagos.

But all this may soon become a tale of the past in the state of aquatic splendour, said Akeem Popoola Fahm, Lagos State Commissioner for Science and Technology. Admitting that the monumental challenges confronting the state are real, Fahm said that the burning desire to achieve better living standards for the state’s teeming population was what prompted Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to begin to think out of the box. In a press briefing to unfold some of what the state is doing to alleviate the sufferings of residents, the Commissioner said the governor, having risen to top management levels in the corporate world before ‘cross-carpeting’ into the public sector, knows too well that doing the same things in the same ways would only produce the usual results.

The Commissioner, who was accompanied to the press briefing by Tubosun Alake, Special Adviser to the Governor on innovation and technology, Segun Adeniji, Permanent Secretary, and other top officials in the Ministry of Science and Technology, reiterated that Lagos is aware that its current population foists a heavy pressure on infrastructure, which can hinder the state’s efforts to provide stable socio-economic development and delivery of quality livelihood for its citizens and teeming visitors. To get out of the woods, the officials said Lagos has since realised that leveraging on technology to make the state a smart city will help in solving most of the issues agitating the minds of Lagosians. Working under #ForAGreaterLagos, the top functionaries insisted that achieving a smart city status will engender a Lagos that delivers efficient public services and better the standards of living for all residents.

The heart of the matter

As a mark of its demonstration of seriousness towards attaining a smart city status, Lagos recently acquired some state-of-the-art technological equipment that can help it achieve its dream. As a testimony to its commitment towards a smart city, the state government has just acquired two Tiguar S-410 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). A trailblazing feat, the newly-procured drones were inaugurated recently during a maiden flight, which took place on Saturday, 16th November, at Caleb University Sports complex, Imota, Lagos. With this technology, Mr. Fahm enthused that the UAVs will give Lagos more convenient resources system to deliver the digital mapping infrastructure that will serve as the backbone for the state’s planning activities. It was disclosed that, at least, six UAV operators have been trained and certified in Poland to fly and maintain the UAVs.

Short of having an on-call manned air fleet, UAVs would offer the unique ability for the state government to capture data within a convenient time frame whenever it is in need of accurate facts to guide planning. Due to the unique flight characteristics of UAVs, experts say the imagery they generate is sharper, which confers additional unique advantages of on whatever that is generated. Drones fly very low compared to manned aircraft – 409 feet is a typical altitude. This means the onboarding camera can capture high-ground resolution on the order of 2 to 5 centimetres, while turnaround time is a few hours instead of days, weeks, or months in the case of traditional delivery times. That is not all. Another advantage of procuring the UAVs is that the state will now be able to control the process rather than working with an outside vendor or being stuck with generic imagery that doesn’t meet the temporal requirements.

Fahm said the UAVs will be most useful in orthophoto mapping, environmental monitoring, infrastructural control, flood monitoring, search and rescue operations and many more disaster management activities. Once the digital mapping is available, it provides limitless benefits for the state in terms of delivering accurate data that helps purposeful planning, as there is virtually nothing involved in public affairs management that does not require this great planning tool, he stressed. This vital ingredient for governance is what the state has lacked over the years, which has limited its capacity to achieve the dream of a smart city where social services are delivered more efficiently so that can people live more meaningfully.

“It will help in processing land information. It will help to identify different structures whether buildings, schools, hospitals and so on available within the state and provide the necessary navigation so that people can go there and plan events around the areas. The information can be used for future planning because we will be able to identify areas available for agriculture, areas available for estate planning, areas available for hospitals and so on. It is going to be a great planning tool,” an elated Fahm said.

The real benefits of EGIS project

Buffeted with issues surrounding property acquisitions and complaints about ease of doing business in Lagos, the state initiated and launched the Lagos Enterprise GIS (eGIS) platform in 2015. At the time, what the government set out to achieve was to empower itself with the technological wherewithal to be able to provide a full digital mapping platform of the entire state. Armed with digital mapping data, Fahm enthused that the state would be able to develop programmes such as land management, flood, erosion controls and rainfall patterns in more efficient ways.

But the scope of the ambitious project has since been expanded to cover migration of the present spatial data infrastructure (SDI) to the Cloud platform, implementation of google geo-technology platform, deployment of the continuously operating reference stations (CORs) across the divisions of the state, acquisition of unmanned aerial vehicles for data capture and mapping, building of bespoke applications to cover health, pharmaceuticals, agricultural sector and real-time kinematics for structural and civil engineers, surveyors in private practice, and navigators; deployment of e-survey solutions, implementation of the integrated land administration and automation system using Thomson Reuters Aumentum Solution.

Because all the data generated is viewable from any part of the world either using desktop, tablet or smart devices, the overall benefit of the project is that it will improve the ease of doing business and boost the confidence of investors locally and internationally. It will also provide for proper monitoring of government infrastructure, ensure accurate land surveys and related services, optimise revenue collected from land transactions and decrease transaction costs and increase incentives for private sector investment. Ultimately, Fahm said, it would bring about improved planning for social services to the populace in the area of education, health, infrastructural development and security; just as it will usher in increased public confidence and people will be more disposed to buying properties due to lower transaction costs. Above all, it would also enable the state government tackle all land conflicts easily as it will bring about the standardisation of business processes involved in land transactions and make way for an improved and bankable Certificate of Occupancy (C of O).

What Lagos will look like as a smart city?

By the time the dream becomes a reality, Fahm averred that Lagos will begin to run a 24-hour economy where companies can operate in a secure environment, thereby creating more jobs and increasing the state’s gross domestic product. Because ICT serves as its backbone, which provides the template upon which everything revolves, a smart city is one in which public facilities and other infrastructure that enable social services delivery to achieve the best possible operational efficiency – since conception, planning, and implementation of policies are anchored on verifiable data. In other words, it is not just a city that is ICT- driven; it one that makes useful information and data readily available for everyone, thus improving both the quality of government services and citizens’ welfare.

According to Fahm, Lagos as a smart city will be much more than just technological networks because it will use new technologies for the benefit of its citizens and the city will become more efficient in the process, especially in the deliverables that make life more abundant for residents. He also assured that by incorporating smart technologies into transport infrastructure, healthcare services, education, water systems, power supplies and government services, it will close the gap between the people and their government. He cited examples of smart cities such as Barcelona, Singapore, Amsterdam and London, among others, where technological innovations have progressively improved the commuting and mobility of citizens, increased their quality of life, improved the environment as well as the economy.

Because Governor Sanwo-Olu has realized that if Lagos becomes a smart city, the interplay of human capital, social capital and ICT infrastructure will lessen both the burden of governance and pains of living in the city. This, Fahm stated, will address public issues, achieve a sustainable development and increase the quality of life of citizens within the shortest possible time, since global advancements in technology and their application to impact speedily in almost all challenges facing public affairs management and deliverables in a mega city like Lagos will bring about e-government, safe city, mobility/WiFi/digital citizens, open data, smart farming/agriculture, smart buildings, smart grid/energy/utilities.

Lagos smart city dream, not a one-man orchestra

Believing that Lagos, which generates about 90 per cent of Nigeria’s trade flows and is rated the fifth largest economy in Africa, can do far better than it is currently doing in view of its humongous potentials, the Lagos State House of Assembly (LAHA) has also fully thrown its weight behind the smart city initiative – seeing it as a great possibility. During the 2020 budget presentation, the speaker, Hon Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa, challenged the executive arm of government to come up with bold and innovative ideas that can take Lagosians out of the woods and precipitate tremendous changes and improvement in the standards of living of residents. While promising that LAHA is fully prepared to lend its support, Obasa suggested other means of mass transportation in the state, especially rail, at the presentation of the 2020 budget by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu recently.

Having a population of over 20 million dependent on-road transportation, which is the most common for movement of people and goods in Lagos, needs to be reviewed if social and economic prosperity is to be realised in a state that records the most visits from across the country averaging 5, 000 daily, with not less than 600 people staying put and taking residence in spite of the state’s disadvantaged position in landmass. He pointedly asked Governor Sanwo-Olu to change the narrative in the area of transportation, which is at the heart of any economic development, but a major headache in Lagos. Also, the lawmakers admonished the executive to take advantage of the state’s aquatic endowment by embracing water transportation, saying a functional and modern transportation system is one of the major indices of a smart city.

“It is worthy of note that Lagos State as it is today needs radical, aggressive and logistic revamping. It requires an urgent and holistic revamping. It requires an urgent, economic and infrastructural turnaround. Mr. Governor must be bold to lay a solid foundation to be built on by successive administrations. It is high time we came up with innovative ideas and strategies to bring change to the state with the aim of taking it to the next level. It is common knowledge that doing things the same way will yield the same result. But when we desire new things, a marvellous and egalitarian society, we have to look inward and change the approach.

“To move Lagos forward, there is the need to focus more attention on the rail to connect the entire Lagos. A rail from Ogun State boundary down to Lekki, Epe; a rail from Ikorodu to the same area should be urgently considered. Those under construction must be speedily completed. No amount of road patching, rehabilitations and constructions will really solve our transportation problem judging by the influx of people into Lagos on a daily basis. With money or not, we have to start doing something,” Obasa said.

Without mincing words, it is clear the new administration in Lagos has its work cut out for it. Besides having Governor Sanwo-Olu at the driver seat in this ambitious smart city project, there is more than an able hand in the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, whose wealth of experience in the ICT world and public affairs management will also come in handy in the journey towards making Lagos a smart city. Interestingly, Hamzat was the state’s Commissioner for Science and Technology from August 2005 till June 2011, before becoming the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure from 2011 till May 2015.

An alumnus of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, where he bagged his first and second degrees in Agricultural Engineering in 1986 and 1988, respectively, before crowning it with a PhD in System Process Engineering at Cranefield University, England, Dr. Hamzat’s tenure as Commissioner for Science and Technology was widely applauded for initiating and enforcing the application of modern technology usage in the state’s ministries, which changed the face of data and record-keeping and eliminated the scourge of ghost workers that had plagued the state for years.

To complement the team is Fahm, himself a seasoned ICT expert with a track record of distinction in how to deploy technological innovations to solve social problems. Apart from his wealth of experience cutting across different fields in IT while working in the United States, the 61-year old Lagosian holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Industrial Technology from Ohio University, Athens Ohio, as well as Master in Business Administration in Computer Information and Systems Science from the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), Washington DC. His illustrious career, which began as a university computer lab technician, took him to Accenture Federal Services, a management and IT consulting firm as a Cloud Computing Architect. During Fahm’s tenure at Accenture, he managed the operational modernisation for the US Department of Homeland Security, US Air Force, Department of Health and Human Services (Obama Care) and the Social Security Administration.

And as Tunde Braimoh, chairman Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Information, Strategy and Security, said recently, with the redefined synergy and unity of purpose between the Lagos lawmakers and the executive, Lagosians are definitely in for a better deal in the march towards making the city a more functional place, with all the accoutrements of comfort, security and prosperity that are often taken for granted in a smart city.

What has reading and research got to do with Nigeria’s development? A lot, writes Editor-At-Large SEGUN AYOBOLU

ALL too often, policymakers and development experts reflexively assume a positive correlation between the expansion of access to education and the rate of socio-economic development in any country. Thus, the provision of quality education for the vast majority of a country’s population is the fourth item on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) made up of 17 policy objectives set up in 2015 to be pursued as a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all” by member countries of the organisation to be achieved by the year 2030. Experts lament that the over 10 million children reported to be out of school in Nigeria, for instance, is not only a measure of the present depth of poverty prevalence in the country but it also portends a gloomy future for those unfortunate children who are being deprived of the skills, information and outlook to participate productively in an ever-increasingly more competitive global society.

To address this problem, governments at all levels have invested heavily in education since the beginning of this dispensation in 1999 although stakeholders in the sector continue to contend that the percentage of the federal and state budgets allocated to education still falls far short of the funding level required to make the requisite developmental impact. Many northern states in particular such as Kaduna, Sokoto, Kano, Plateau and Borno, as examples, have aggressively pursued the expansion of educational facilities, the improvement of curricula as well as the quality of teaching not only to tackle the endemic poverty in the region but to also bridge the gap between the North and the South in that key criterion of development.

But is the sheer phenomenal increase in the quantity of primary, secondary and tertiary institutions as well as the number of those who graduate from them or even an improvement in the quality of the certificates acquired by these graduates a sufficient condition for education to make the desired impact as a catalyst of national development? Standtall Africa Initiative (STAI), a Leadership & Capacity Building Training and Educational Consultancy Organisation with presence in Nigeria and a number of other African countries, does not think so.

The organization’s Country Representative in Nigeria, Dr Emmanuel Ogoh, a Medical Psychologist and author, contends that the vast increase in the number of graduates from diverse educational institutions at all levels has not been matched with an accompanying inculcation of a habitual and widespread reading culture among a significant percentage of the population such as can facilitate the emergence of a truly enlightened and development-enhancing citizenry.

To promote a healthy reading culture as a harbinger of a genuine knowledge renaissance in Africa and Nigeria, STAI, which focuses on Leadership Development, Education and Entrepreneurship, has come up with a number of programmes targeted at specific critical segments of the education terrain. These include ‘The Readers’ Award’ designed for lecturers of tertiary institutions, ‘The Readers’ Competition’, which will be organized at different levels for students of primary, secondary and tertiary institutions and ‘The Nigeria Reads Award’, which is aimed at a broad cross-section of Nigerians across organizations, careers and professions and will commence by January 2020.

On Saturday, 16th November, STAI held the grand finale of its ‘The Readers’ Award’ event for 2019 and also on the occasion formally inaugurated its ‘Readers’ Ambassadorial team for the effective reading and research campaign across Nigeria. The event, which took place at the JVM hotel on Abacha Road on the Abuja-Keffi Expressway in Nasarawa State, attracted academics and administrators from various tertiary institutions including representatives of the Federal Ministry of Education, National Universities Commission (NUC) and the National Education Research Development Centre (NERDC).

Giving an insight into the rationale for ‘The Readers’ Award’ programme, Dr. Ogoh explained that “The aim of the award is to return the lecturers who are the builders of the younger generation back to effective reading and research. The old saying is true that we can’t give what we don’t have. If the vision of bringing our youths out of the educational quagmire of low or zero appetite for avid reading is anything achievable, then our lecturers and the flag-bearers of our tertiary institutions must be motivated through events like the readers award and other productive projects to challenge the status quo and go beyond the norm academically by engaging in practical result-oriented reading and research works”.

A total of 5,200 research papers from 85 institutions entered for the 2019 edition of the competition out of which 18 were shortlisted as the best and out of which four winners eventually emerged after a rigorous written examination. According to Dr Ogoh, “The 5,200 papers submitted were not from across the whole country. It’s only across the northern part of the country. Each participant submitted two research works. The 18 shortlisted papers were picked based on their performance not zonal or quota system. If all 18 winners had emerged from a single institution, it would have been announced just like that”.

The first prize, which attracted a cash award of N2 million was won by Professor Joseph Mangut of the University of Jos whose area of research is the historical archaeology of the Central Nigeria region with specialization in the Jos Plateau. Dr Idowu Enoch Abiodun of the Department of Dentistry, College of Medicine, University of Jos, came second and won a cash prize of N1 million while Professor Gabriel Bassey Egbe of the Department of English and Linguistics, Veritas University, Bwari, Abuja, came third with an award of N500,000. An associate professor of economics at Bingham (ECWA) University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, came 4th with his entry on ‘The IMF, World Bank and Nigeria’s Economic Reforms’ and was rewarded with N100,000.

Dr Ogoh told The Nation that the winning entries for the 2019 award will be put forward to compete in the international edition of the competition, which will take place next year with $35,000 at stake as cash award for the first prize. The STAI country representative believes that economic incentives can also be used to encourage and promote reading and qualitative research. He explains that just as is the case of the music and entertainment industry where those who excel are amply rewarded monetarily, ‘STAI, throughout the effective reading campaigns, shall always seek platforms where established and avid readers will be financially motivated and rewarded with cash and other valuable prizes as the case may be”.

A major highlight of the programme was an illuminating presentation by Professor Yusuf M. Adamu, of the Department of Geography, Bayero University, Kano, on the problems, challenges and prospects of reading and research in Nigeria. Describing the development of a reading culture as a way of life and a lifelong activity, Professor Adamu noted that in the 19th century, Sultan Mohammed Bello of Sokoto knowledgeably discussed the theories of Euclid with the European explorer, Hugh Clapperton, when the latter visited him in Sokoto with copies of the mathematician’s books which the Sultan had apparently read.

He stressed the importance of children being taught to cultivate the reading habit very early in life pointing out that a good library should be an essential and indispensable feature of any home.  In this regard, he advised that STAI’s reading campaigns should target parents as a critical factor in helping to catch children young and inculcating in them the art of reading at an impressionable age. He lamented the fact that most parents now tend to adopt the attitude that it is the responsibility of teachers to impart knowledge to their children, while their own responsibility is to ensure that school fees are paid.

If children are to develop a passion for reading, he said, then the parents are the ones best placed to orientate them in such a direction especially now when there are so many other competing distractions. Of course, it is only those parents who are themselves passionate readers that are most likely to nurture a similar attitude to books in their children. He emphasized that parents not only have a responsibility to provide well-stocked libraries of books for their children at home but they must also find the time to read to their children at home and discuss whatever they read with them. If sufficient attention is not paid to ensuring that children acquire good reading skills early enough particularly at the nursery and primary school level, he said, they are unlikely to develop the facility effectively enough later in life.

Unfortunately, also, he said, most parents restrict themselves to buying recommended textbooks for different subjects taught at school for their children thus depriving them of the immense benefits and pleasure of a much broader and wider range of reading beyond school texts. This tendency to concentrate on subject textbooks rather than the desirable more general, cross-disciplinary kind of reading, Professor Adamu stressed, is also reinforced by our essentially certificate-driven educational system whereby children read to pass examinations and become certificate bearers rather than to cultivate the mind, enjoy the pleasures of reading and becoming more rounded human beings.

Teachers, particularly at the foundational stage of the educational process, are also critical to the nurturing of children passionately attracted to reading. This means, Professor Adamu argued, that the quality of teachers will also negatively impact on the reading habits and skills of children. When teachers themselves do not read beyond the requirements of their specialized subject areas, they will be unable to inspire and motivate their pupils to read widely. Even at the higher levels of tertiary education, he observed, a large number of academics confine their reading to books within their spheres of specialisation and thus are also unable to be role models to their students in terms of cultivating a broad-based reading regime.

Another factor that has militated against the evolution of a vibrant reading culture according to Professor Adamu is the decline in the teaching and nurturing of literature and the humanities generally. Rather, there is more emphasis now placed on education in the so-called STEM subjects – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, which are seen as more relevant and important for accelerated socio-economic development as well as providing those with such skills brighter employment prospects. But literature and the humanities are still indispensable even in the most advanced societies to the nurturing of truly cultured and ethically elevated human beings by promoting and inculcating virtues and values without which science can only lead a man down the abyss of amorality and base materialism.

The preoccupation with education in the hard sciences, Professor Adamu noted, has resulted in the perceived best brains being channelled into the STEM subject areas thus negatively affecting the wide and cultivated reading associated with education in literature and the humanities. Professor Adamu noted that his first desire, for instance, was to read history but he was pressured by the conventional wisdom to specialize in the sciences. This means that the cultivation of a widespread culture of elevated and ennobling reading will also be dependent to a large extent on a revival of popular interest in literature and the humanities irrespective of the individual’s profession, occupation or academic inclination.

Professor Adamu also dwelt on the critical role of good libraries in homes, schools and communities in the inculcation of healthy reading habits among significant numbers of people. With the level of poverty in the society and the buying of books not understandably being the priority of a vast majority of Nigerians, there can be no alternative to government investment in the setting up of good libraries in cities, towns and communities. He cited the example of Kano where some traditional rulers have been encouraged to establish royal libraries within their palaces for the benefit of their people. He noted, interestingly, that in Kano there is a wider reading of books written in Hausa than publications in English. It is certainly worth exploring if wide dissemination of books written in indigenous languages will not be a more effective means of public enlightenment for a large number of Nigerians non-literate in English.

Of course, the professor also inevitably referred to how the social media – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp etc – have become serious impediments to the habit of cultured and pleasurable reading. Unfortunately, social media discourages the kind of concentration that reading requires, has a tendency to shorten the individual’s attention span and even incapacitates the habit of thoughtful, reflective and coherent communication.

The other leg of Professor Adamu’s presentation was on the challenges of effective research in Nigerian universities. He asked a number of penetrating questions as regards the characteristics of academic research in Nigeria: “Do we have a research culture in Nigeria? Do we as academics research for development or essentially for promotion? Do we research to solve problems or to gain promotion?  Are our research activities institutional and collaborative in nature or essentially individualistic? Does each person just carry out his own research activity or is there an overarching framework within which researchers operate? Do various universities have institutional research policies and how many universities have research bibliographies?”

He cited the problems and challenges militating against qualitative research in Nigerian universities to include poor funding, inadequate facilities, underutilization of existing facilities in a number of cases, poor research motivation especially after attaining professorial status, deficient research skills, frequent industrial actions, poor mentoring of young researchers by their academic seniors as well as poor peer review mechanisms among others.

To develop development-oriented research cultures in the universities, Professor Adamu suggested that not only must each university have a guiding Research Policy; Departments should have specified research areas linked to the overall institutional research policy. He also stressed the need for interactive and collaborative research work beyond individual efforts while attendance at research conferences should not be a privilege only for those in the good books of university authorities. He equally emphasized the need to adequately reward qualitative and path-breaking research published in authoritative and highly respected journals. Noting that all these would ultimately depend on the allocation of sufficient resources to research, he said that “No nation can develop faster than its education and this is dependent on an effective reading and research culture”.

The final phase of the event was the inauguration of the Effective Reading and Research Ambassadorial Team which has His Royal Highness, John Gabriel Makwal II SAF, Burutu, Bokkos Local Government Area, Plateau State, Jos, as the Grand patron. It is a testimony to how seriously the traditional ruler takes the reading campaign that he personally attended the ceremony despite an important coronation ceremony going on his domain that day.

In his eloquent and stirring speech, the traditional ruler said: “This event is most timely especially for a generation like ours which is devoid of qualitative reading materials and our homes have been invaded by Facebook, Twitter and Instagram etc. I went into science school and qualified as an engineer with little or no knowledge of history, geography and other aspects of the humanities. The truth is that if I had read history I would have failed because engineering is much simpler. In engineering, all you needed to know was the formula and you would pass but in history, you have to read extensively. We need a new generation of reading youth nurtured by well-furnished libraries and conscientious parents as readers.”

He promised to start the reading promotion campaign right from the Plateau State University located in his domain saying that if the country is to achieve her developmental aspirations, a growing number of Nigerians must begin to read to acquire knowledge, elevate the mind and refine the character rather than just to pass examinations.

Dr Emmanuel Ogoh expressed satisfaction with the enthusiastic turn out for the event and said STAI has plans to systematically spread its activities across the country once it is firmly rooted in its present areas of operation.

The issue of constituency projects and funds voted for them have become contentious. While the lawmakers justify it, the electorate question it. The controversy that has surrounded the matter has drawn the attention of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related matters Commission (ICPC) which has begun investigations on it, writes ONYEDI OJIABOR

The funding and prudent utilisation of funds appropriated for constituency projects have become matters of intense scrutiny lately.

Before now, the controversy trialing the funds has been the necessity for the appropriation with less attention paid to the way and manner the funds are deployed.

It is apparent that constituency project funds have been serially abused over the years, either by poor project execution, projects abandonment, or outright non-execution of projects.

More often, value for appropriated funds was thrown overboard. Funds appropriated for constituency projects are mostly seen as loose funds to line the pockets of those who recommended the projects and the beneficiaries. No questions are asked.

The narrative is gradually changing for the better. All thanks to the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) which has taken up the challenge to ask questions.

The fear of ICPC has become the beginning of wisdom for beneficiaries of the hitherto wobbly constituency project funds.

In its effort to track the funds, the anti-graft agency, in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA), has placed tracking of the utilisation of the constituency project funds on the front burner.

Working with MacArthur Foundation, ActionAid and UpRight for Nigeria, ICPC held a talk shop on the necessity for community ownership of constituency projects.

It also launched a national awareness campaign on community monitoring and ownership of constituency projects tagged “My Constituency, My projects.”

The campaign is essentially aimed at addressing misconceptions and corrupt practices in the implementation of constituency projects as revealed by the report of its first phase of the ICPC-led constituency projects tracking group exercise.

It was equally aimed at securing the buy in of the media and stakeholders for the campaign, which focuses on creating awareness in beneficiary communities on the need for them to monitor execution, take ownership and safeguard constituency projects in their localities.

To further ensure that communities get value for released constituency projects funds, ICPC said it is also working with the Institute of Quantity Surveyors, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Budget Office, Bureau of Public Procurement and Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation.

The commission said its trip to 12 states to track constituency projects which contracts had been budgeted for and awarded, revealed a lot of wrongdoings concerning how the contracts were carried out resulting in the communities not benefiting from the projects.

It classified constituency projects to include health, education or infrastructure projects recommended by legislators at federal level-Senate and House of Representatives- or state House of Assembly or projects identified by government agencies and recognised as beneficial to the people for government to carry out in their various constituencies for the benefit of the people they represent.

Constituency projects, it said, may also include “empowerment” projects such as the distribution of motorbikes, Keke NAPEP and sewing machines which it listed are difficult to track for transparency and accountability, and are often used to divert public funds and therefore should be discouraged or closely monitored.

To further throw light on proposal for the projects, the ICPC explained that during budgeting, it is expected that members of the National Assembly and members of the State Houses of Assembly know the areas of need of their constituents and recommend the inclusion of projects that will address such areas.

While the projects are recommended by the legislators, the budget/funding are domiciled with relevant MDAs which, in turn, oversee the implementation of the projects in various constituencies.

The execution of the projects on the other hand is handled by contractors with the supervision of relevant government agencies.

It is emphasised that since the projects are funded by public money raised from taxes paid by citizens and from other sources of government revenue, no individual should claim accolade for them.

The commission made it clear that the people who recommended them ought not to claim ownership of the projects, nor should the projects be regarded as favour done to communities by them.

For the ICPC, as a result of the corruption associated with constituency projects over the years such as poor quality work, abandoned work or no work at all as money goes into private pockets or where equipment are purchased for public projects but are diverted to private use; or even where money is spent on equipment but they are left to rot and dilapidate, it has become necessary for members of the community to take more interest in the projects.

The battle of wits has always been between members of the National Assembly who feel that it is only through the execution of constituency projects that they can remain politically relevant in communities and the Presidency that sees the appropriation of constituency projects funds as unnecessary duplication of functions.

That constituency projects and their funding have more than ever before been in the eye of the storm. Most of the beneficiaries of the funds are running for cover. Some are dissociating themselves from the fund under the guise that they never asked for it.

President Muhammadu Buhari raised the stake in the examination of constituency projects funds with his damning revelation that more than N1 trillion was voted for the execution of constituency projects in the last decade with little or nothing to show for the huge allocation.

Members of the National Assembly, who were obviously jolted by the critical revelation, launched a counter-offensive to clear their names.

For the legislators, N1 trillion may have been appropriated for constituency projects in the last decade but not as much was released for the purpose.

The issue is still hanging, begging for further clarifications for the benefit of the communities.

Documents accessed from ICPC revealed new dimensions that apart from legislators, MDAs receive billions of the constituency projects funds under what the government tagged Zonal Intervention Projects (ZIP).

In the 2019 Budget, the sum of N100 billion was allocated to ZIP. The Presidency, agriculture, water resources topped list of beneficiaries of the funds.

Even some MDAs that ordinarily has nothing to do with constituency projects, benefited from the allocation.

ICPC described the sum of N3.76 billion curiously built into ZIP fund as “unclassified” and therefore “at the risk of being stolen.”

Unclassified allocation is said to represent “allocations with no specific projects” attached to them.

Apart from the N3.76 billion unclassified vote, questions were also raised on the allocation of N2.9 billion earmarked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Breakdown of the N100 billion ZIP allocations to MDAs show that N13.3 billion was allocated to the Presidency, Agriculture got N15.4 billion, Water Resources received N13 billion while Science and Technology was voted N10.7 billion.

Others included Education N7.6 billion, Industry, Trade and Investment N7.9 billion, Information N4.1 billion, Labour and Employment N5.7 billion, Health N3 billion, Humanitarian Affairs N3.4 billion, Environment N2.7 billion, Special Duties N1.9 billion, Justice N2.7 billion, Communication N1.1 billion and Works, Power and Housing N1.2 billion.

The allocations also included Defence N444 million, Transportation N807 million, Women Affairs N310 million, Budget N311 million, Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) N217 million, Solid Minerals N270 million, FCTA N59 million, Head of Civil Service N120 million, Interior N6 million and Youth and Sport N10 million.

All the agencies and commissions attached to the office of the President and Vice-President are said to draw their funds from the allocation to the Presidency.

Allocation on geo-political zones showed that Northwest received N17.97 billion, Northeast N16.06 billion North Central N17.90 billion, Southwest N14.28 billion, Southeast N14.83 billion while Southsouth received N15.14 billion.

Chairman of ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye threw more light on the controversy trailing the over N1 trillion voted for constituency projects over the years.

For the ICPC boss, the commission did not set out to embarrass anybody but the fight against graft must be fought to its logical conclusion.

Owasanoye agreed that constituency projects are in the eye of the storm in recent times but emphasised there was absolutely no plan to do anybody in.

The aim of the commission, he said, is to ensure that the projects are sited in the communities and for Nigerians to get value for money.

For him, ICPC has the duty to ensure that the law is complied with at all times.

On the N1 trillion voted for constituency projects over the years, he said even if 10 per cent of the fund was released, “we must see what it is used for and Nigerians must begin to get value for money.”

One of the things they found in the field, he said, was complete lack of information about constituency projects.

Owasanoye further said the commission is determined to focus on systemic issues, and added that part of their experience in the field is also that empowerment that takes a large chunk of the vote is so opaque to measure.

For ICPC boss, communities should understand that constituency projects are their projects hence the commission has recommended that projects should be handed over to communities for them to take ownership.

He stressed the need for communities to appreciate the fact that projects do not belong to the sponsors or legislators who recommended them since they were not funded from their pockets.

On allocations to MDAs that ought not to receive such funds, he said some MDAs have written to dissociate themselves from such allocations.

Asked what allocation for constituency project is doing for instance, in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Owasanoye insisted the ICPC is determined to correct such anomaly.