The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Suleiman Adamu

  • Nigeria needs executive to end open defecation – Minister

    Mr Suleiman Adamu, the Minister of Water Resources, says an executive order is needed to end open defecation  in the country.

    Adamu said this at a one-day Inter-Ministerial Dialogue on Sanitation in Abuja, aimed at gathering momentum and collaborative plans between line ministries toward ending open defecation.

    According to him, the executive order from the president will mandate Nigerians to make efforts at ending open defecation.

    “India, as the number one largest country practicing open defecation is on course to becoming open defecation-free by Oct. 2019.

    “This will leave Nigeria as the number one open defecation prevalence country.

    “Within the last four years, India has been able to provide toilets for 400 million persons, and is on track to meet the target of delivering toilets to an additional 150 million persons before October 2019.

    “The India campaign to eliminate open defecation, under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), demonstrates that it is possible to change attitudes and facilitate access to sanitation facilities and hygienic practices.

    “We are proposing an executive order to the president that will mandate all ministries to address all issues of sanitation and so this is a national issue.

    “Our main focus is behaviour change; we want to people to know the need to have and use toilets for themselves.’’

    He said that this step was necessary as there were overlapping of policies on scaling up sanitation, noting the inter-connectivity between Water, Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) and other sectors.

    The minister expressed hope that with the meeting, the line ministers would support the endeavour toward ending open defecation practice in the country.

    He said that the challenge of low support from state and local governments might be a hindrance, adding that it would not be business as usual.

    “We have laid down key strategies like the Partnership for Expanded Water and Sanitation and the inauguration of the WASH Action Plan, and now to the Open Defecation-Free roadmap by 2025, to ensure that we carry everyone along.

    “If there are vulnerable and poor people, part of our social investment activities will support such facilities to be constructed.’’

    He stressed the need to harmonise all sanitation policies with the inclusion of the environment ministry as a key stakeholder, adding that the first lady had agreed to champion the ODF campaign to also carrying all governors’ wives on board.

    The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Aisha Abubakar, said that the relevance of WASH sector to the ministry, stressing the importance of having a harmonised sanitation policy.

    She said that the ministry had commenced efforts to institutionalise menstrual hygiene management in its policies and programmes, adding that this was being included in the National Gender Policy.

    She expressed worry over poor sanitation practice in schools, saying it was a matter for regret that toilets were poorly maintained and unavailable for school children, calling on the education ministry to do more to scale up sanitation in schools.

    The minister also called for provision of incinerators in schools and public places, saying this would go a long way to promote safe disposal of sanitary pads.

    Mr Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing noted that issues of sanitation and hygiene cuts across all parts of the society, saying poor WASH could affect productivity and Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.

    Fashola said that there was the need to seek out ways to dispose all kinds of wastes, noting that promoting access to water supply and managing waste effectively were pillars for inclusive development.

    The minister said that there was the need to awaken national consciousness through behaviour change to promote wellness, calling for support from sub-national levels to address the challenges.

    He said that plans were on to refurbish buildings with consideration to sanitation facilities, adding that this would in turn promote sanitation marketing and employment generation.

    The Joint Monitoring Progress 2017 states that by October 2019, Nigeria may become the country with the highest number of persons practicing open defecation.

    With approximately one in four persons, 47 million people will have nowhere to go to toilet, while the national access to basic sanitation stands at a low level of 33 per cent.

    Data from the recently conducted WASH National Outcome Routine Monitoring (WASHNORM) in 2018 showed a marginal reduction in access to improved water supply to 67.9 per cent with only 3.7 per cent meeting safely managed criteria for sanitation.

    NAN

  • Breaking: Buhari meets Imams, Islamic scholars in Aso Rock

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday met with Imams and Senior Islamic scholars from all the states of the Federation at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The closed doors meeting started around 12.03pm when President Buhari arrived at the venue.

    Top government officials in attendance included Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha and the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Danbazzau.

    Read Also: Buhari, CAN leaders meet in Aso Rock

    Also at the meeting were the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, Water Resources Minister, Suleiman Adamu.

    The meeting was still in progress at the time of filing this report.

  • FG launches campaign to end open defecation

    The Federal Government has launched the Clean Nigeria Campaign aimed at ending open defecation in Nigeria by 2025.

    Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, launched the campaign and a website to track the progress of the campaign at the headquarters of the ministry in Abuja.

    He said the site will serve as a link to the public and to monitor the progress being made across the country on ending open defecation in Nigeria by 2025.

    According to him, the website for the ODF campaign will create awareness and sensitise the public on activities of the clean Nigeria Programme.

    “The ministry has put in place the clean Nigeria program to end open defection by 2025 with the slogan: ‘Clean Nigeria, use the toilet.’

    READ ALSO: FG launches new international passport

    “The cleannigeria.ng is the official website for the national campaign to end open defecation. It is one aspect of the campaign to visualise information for advocacy and communication.

    “We want Nigerians and the world to follow the progress being made to end open defecation in the country.

    “We want users to be inspired to take action and contribute their quota to the progress being made to end open defecation in Nigeria,” the minister said.

    The minister said the government was committed to ending open defecation in the country by 2025.

    He said this made President Muhammadu Buhari to launch the National Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Action Plan and declared a state of emergency in the sector in 2018.

  • FG denies privatisation of Dams

    The Minister of Water Resources Suleiman Adamu on Tuesday denied claims that it was privatising the nation’s dams, saying what was being done was hydropower concessioning.

    Adamu said this at the opening of a Media Water Sector Workshop in Abuja.

    According to him, what is being done is to give partial ownership to beneficiaries to develop the hydro power component for the overall benefit of Nigerians.

    “We are not concessioning dams, when we concession, we are concessioning the hydro power component of the dam but the dam itself will still be owned by the Federal Government.

    “What we do is to provide some leasing arrangement for cage fish farming and all others, we concession hydropower for aquaculture.”

    Adamu said the concessioning model, being facilitated by the Infrastructure Concessioning and Regulatory Commission and Bureau of Public Enterprises allows a concessionaire to take custody of the project for a period of time as determined by the financial analysis.

    He added the concessionaire would be responsible for generating hydro power and connecting it to the transmission network made available by the Transmission Company of Nigeria for distribution.

    On Gurara Dam, Adamu said the ministry was negotiating with the preferred and reserved bidder in line with the guidelines of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), to drive the processes to benefit Nigerians.

    READ ALSO: FG partners IAEA on management of unground water resources

    He said that the rule in the guidelines of ICRC stipulated that a Transaction Adviser be involved in the processes.

    “We have concluded that of Gurara where we have 30 megawatts of hydro power plant, all the processes leading to the concessioning have been done, what is left is for us to present it to the Federal Executive Council for approval.

    “We still have to wait because the transmission line is not working and it is not within the purview of the ministry, it is taken by Transmission Company of Nigeria

    “A lot of progress has been made, we hope that by the end of this year, something will happen.”

    The minister stressed that shortlisted firms had been given their request for proposal and analysed in choosing the preferred and reserved bidder.

    He expressed hope that successive administration would ride on what was being done, saying with the coming in of the private sector operators in irrigation, through the Graduate and Youth Empowerment Scheme, more hectares would be achieved.

    Mr Benson Ajisegiri, the Director, Water Supply, with the ministry, said efforts in improving access to water and sanitation led to the inauguration of the Partnership for Expanded Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programme (PEWASH).

    Ajisegiri, represented by Mr Abdulhamid Gwaram, said so far, 22 states had indicated interest and signed the PEWASH Protocol, noting that implementation had started in Kano and Ogun states.

    Mrs. Oyeronke Oluniyi, the Deputy Director, Irrigation and Drainage Department, said that the ministry was working to see that irrigated agriculture was promoted in parts of the country.

    According to her, so far, part of the intervention is the Bakolori Irrigation Scheme in Zamafara which has reached 40 per cent completion and has been able to cultivate no fewer than 528,000 tonnes of rice and other cereals.

    Oluniyi called for support from stakeholders to enable the ministry meet its target of irrigation for national development.

    The Director, Press and Public Relations with the ministry, Mrs Kenechukwu Offie, said the aim of the workshop was to educate the media on better reportage of the ministry and its activities.

    She said this was also an opportunity to equip the media with the modern styles and dynamics of quality water reporting.

    NAN

  • Buhari to attend climate change conference in Poland

    President Muhammadu Buhari is scheduled to leave Abuja on Saturday for Katowice, Poland, to attend the 24th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP24) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

     

    The conference is holding from 2nf to 5th of December, 2018.

     

    The COP24 Summit, which will be held at the International Conference Centre (MCK) and the adjacent Spodek Arena in Katowice, is being convened under the Presidency of Poland.

     

    According to the organisers, the conference is expected to finalize the rules for implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change under the Paris Agreement Work Programme (PAWP) – the rule book for implementation.

     

    During the Leaders’ Summit at COP24, a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, said that President Buhari will deliver a national statement highlighting Nigeria’s commitment to addressing climate change by implementing the goals set out in its National Determined Contributions.

     

    He will also use the occasion to accentuate Nigeria’s willingness to work with international partners to reverse the negative effects of climate change in Africa and the world over, while expecting that developed nations scale up their emission reduction activities in order to limit the increase in average global temperatures to well below 2 degrees centigrade between now and 2020.

     

    The Leaders’ Summit is expected to adopt a ‘‘Declaration on Solidarity and Just Transition Silesia,’’ – named after the region of Poland where this year’s climate conference is taking place.

    Read Also: Buhari seeks renewed support against terror

    As a member of the Committee of the African Heads of State on Climate Change – a group of 10 African countries that meets and takes positions concerning issues of climate change on behalf of the continent – Nigeria has been at the forefront of advancing policies and initiatives aimed at addressing significant challenges occasioned by climate change such as reviving the Lake Chad, halting and reversing desertification, flooding, ocean surge and oil spillage.

     

    “President Buhari will continue to champion these pressing issues at COP24 in Katowice, among others, as well as reiterate Nigeria’s position on the need for African countries to access financial resources, especially the Green Climate Fund to draw up climate change adaptation policies and actions for implementation.

     

    “The Nigerian delegation will also showcase the policy measures and actions of the Federal Government at ensuring environmental sustainability and effectively combating climate change through several side events within the Nigerian pavilion.”

     

    While in Poland, President Buhari will hold an interactive session with the Nigerian community in that country.

     

    He is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

     

    The President will be accompanied by Governors Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Yahaya Bello and Abubakar Sani Bello of Enugu, Kogi and Niger States, respectively.

     

    Others on his entourage include the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, the Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, and the Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Jibrin.

  • No development without investment in infrastructure , says Minister

    Massive investment in infrastructure is crucial to economic growth and development, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said.

    Mohammed noted that it was this realization that made the current administration to give priority to investment in critical infrastructure in the last three and half years.

    The minister spoke on Thursday in Ibadan at the 14th edition of the Special Town Hall meeting. The meeting which is also the second on infrastructure had as members of panel, Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transport, Babatunde Fashola, Minister of Housing, Power and Works and also Suleiman Adamu, Minister of Water Resources.

    The minister noted in his opening remark that investment in infrastructure is a fast route to development.

    He said, “This Administration, realizing that no nation develops without massive investment in infrastructure, has made such investment a priority, and it is paying off, as you will hear shortly from the Honourable Minister of Power, Works and Housing.

    “Whether in the area of job creation or stimulation of economic growth, investment in infrastructure is a fast route to development.

    You cannot talk about the developed Western nations without talking about their roads, power, ports and rail system, just to mention a few. This is because these nations have invested massively in infrastructure over the years, realizing that infrastructure spurs economic growth by enhancing productivity and efficiency. The same template has also been adopted by many other countries, including China, Japan and South Korea. We are in no doubt that the solid foundation that we are laying in the area of infrastructure will be a catalyst to the much-needed economic development in our dear country.”

    Read Also: Minister denies issuing ultimatum to Israel over Kanu

    He therefore noted that the special town hall meeting which will go on till 2019 is to showcase the achievements of the Buhari administration.

    The essence, the minister said “is to provide a platform for the federal government to regularly give account of its stewardship to the people, get a feedback and inputs from them and, overall, to enhance citizens’ participation in governance.”

    This further explains why the meetings have gone round the six get-political zones of the country.

    At the end of the meeting, stakeholders commended the federal government for the massive infrastructural development in the South West, while also urging them to do more especially in the area of power, road and security across the country.

  • Senate to pass water resources Bill soon, says FG

    The Federal Government on Tuesday said it was hopeful that the Senate would pass the controversial Water Resources Bill in the next few months.

    The bill seeking to concentrate the control of water resources in the hands of the Federal Government divided senators along regional lines when it was read on the floor of the red chambers.

    However, the minister said the government was confident that the bill was a ‘done deal’ “after explaining all the relevant issues raised in the Bill to the senators.”

    Minister of Water Resources, Engr. Suleiman Adamu, said this at a conference on water use regulations, compliance, monitoring and enforcement framework, in Abuja, organised by the Nigeria Integrated Water Resources Management Commission (NIWRMC).

    He said: “I am very happy and confident that the distinguished members of the senate who are well vast and experienced in governance and other activities of life, have a clear understanding now of what this Bill is all about and I am very optimistic that in the next few weeks or few months, by God’s grace, the controversy around this Bill will come to past.

    “At the end of the day, Bills are not made on the pages of newspapers or in comments on social media but they are made in the senate and we believe we have wise men in the senate. The 109 wise men in the senate will do the needful having asked all the relevant questions and we having explained all the relevant issues to them are confident that this bill is a done deal.”

    Read Also: National Assembly not worried, says Senate chief

    He said it was unfortunate that people were busy commenting on something (Bill) they were totally ignorant of.

    Engr. Adamu also accused Nigerians of trying to politicise the Bill rather than see the benefits the country could derive from having the Bill passed.

    He appealed to Nigerians to stop making controversial statements on the Bill, saying their comments about the Bill tend to make the country a laughing stock in the eyes of the international community.

    The minister said: “I believe this Bill is very dear to the heart of everybody here but unfortunately, as it is with many good things in the country, people have misunderstood the benefits of this Bill. I have tried, as we have done, in the past few weeks to address the issue, I still see some comments about people, I think not really because they don’t understand, I think they are just trying to politicise the Bill, an effort that is being made in the overall best interest of this country.

    “I will like to urge all of us who are stakeholders; you should not allow this business of explaining this bill to the ministry for the minister. I think we all have a stake in this. I came here in 2015. Many of you have been working on this Bill for the past 12 years. It is your baby and you have a responsibility to also enlighten the people and get this Bill passed too.

    “I will like to appeal to Nigerians to please stop these controversial comments, unintelligible comments, unpalatable comments, unfounded comments about this Bill because they tend to make us a laughing stock in the eyes of the international community.”

    In his remarks, Executive Director of the NIWRMC, Reuben Habu, said the commission had issued licences for 125 applicants to do water and power projects.

    He said: “We have issued 125 licences for irrigation, hydropower generation, thermal water generation, water supply.

    “We are monitoring their activities to ensure they operate within the terms and conditions of the licences given them.”

  • Water utilities have failed – FG

    …seeks special funds for WASH

     

    The Federal Government said on Monday that water utilities which delivered quality and portable water to homes, offices and organizations had failed to serve Nigerians.

    The government said access to piped water on premises that was 32 per cent in 1990 had declined to seven per cent in 2015.

    Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, disclosed these at a workshop on state water agencies/utility turnaround and governance reform for Commissioners of Water Resources, in Abuja, on Monday.

    The programme was organised by the National Urban Water Sector Reform Project office.

    The minister said that apart from poor access to improved water sources, the sector was also confronted by poor quality water, inefficient service delivery and failing infrastructure.

    He said: “In the urban areas, majority has resulted to self-help as the water utilities are not serving majority of the population. Access to piped water on premises that was 32 per cent in 1990 has declined to seven percent in 2015.

    “We need to think and work differently if we are going to close service gaps in water supply and sanitation and improve human development outcomes. After years of neglect, the development of inclusive low-cost sanitation solutions in urban and rural areas alike deserve to be considered among priorities.

    “Interventions need to be coordinated across WASH, health nutrition sectors to help our children to reach their full potential in life.”

    The minister, who called for the establishment of a special fund to tackle water, sanitation and hygiene issues, also said his ministry had taken steps to address some of the challenges facing the sector.

    One of the steps, he said, was the development of a National WASH Action Plan which has set out a 13 year revitalization strategy for the sector.

    The minister said the plan, which has been approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), included an 18 month emergency phase and a five year recovery plan.

    “It commits to the Federal and state governments to concrete actions under five themes comprising of governance, sustainability, sanitation, funding and financing and monitoring and evaluation.

    “Also embedded in the Action Plan is the establishment of a National WASH Fund as a tool for promoting renewed Federal-State partnership and increased financial investment for a WASH with a view to measuring up to regional level of funding.

    “I am happy to inform this gathering that the National WASH Action Plan was recently approved by the Federal Executive Council including the declaration of ‘state of emergency’ in the WASH sector.”

    He said the declaration of state of emergency on the sector by the government would help reverse some of the negative trends in the sector.

    According to him, the action by the federal government would lead to increased investment in the water and sanitation sector by the various tiers of government.

    “I trust that the declaration of the state of emergency will change the narrative surrounding the sector and set the stage for a reversal of current trends under the guidance of the National WASH Action Plan. This declaration seeks to put the full weight of the Federal Government behind addressing the sector’s shortcomings and challenges.

    “The declaration of State of Emergency in the WASH sector indicates the that government has the political will to improve the sector, that is the number one signal, secondly what would follow is we expect increase investment in the water and sanitation sector by the various tiers of government.

    “You have also heard of the plan to have WASH Fund and all the reforms we are trying to put in place to support the Water and Sanitation sector, with the declaration of State of Emergency we expect that those things would be put in place and there would be a bit more seriousness and stronger commitment to achieving the sustainable development goals.

    “Without their collaboration and cooperation it won’t work, they are the ones that directly provide water services to the people. This workshops is one of the effort we are making, we have had retreats, workshops, National Council on Water Resources and we have been hammering this problem, it requires a lot of advocacy and all the federal government is doing is to lead by example, having declared a state of emergency we are now pushing the states to do the same and judging from the attendance here by state Commissioners, it’s an indication that there will be light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.

  • Nigeria’s agricultural revolution on course – Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday in Auyo, Jigawa State, said that Nigeria’s agricultural revolution is real and on course.

    He spoke at an event marking the commencement of the rehabilitation and expansion of the 6,000-hectare Hadejia Valley irrigation project in the state.

    President Buhari, according to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, also assured Nigerians that his administration would sustain the positive momentum in the sector by implementing the right policies and providing the needed financial resources for people-oriented projects.

    The President, who is in Jigawa State for a two-day working visit, expressed delight that the Federal Government’s economic diversification and inclusive growth programmes were yielding positive results, particularly in key food-producing states.

    He applauded the World Bank’s assistance to the project, which when completed would increase water availability for all-season farming in the State and beyond.

    Also speaking, the Minister of Water Resources, Alhaji Suleiman Adamu explained that works on the Phase One of the project which started in the early eighties during the administration of President Shehu Shagari and received some funding under the Petroleum Special Trust Fund had suffered frequent abandonment due to lack of funds.

    Adamu said with N9.6 billion allocated under the $495 million World Bank-assisted Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) project in five different irrigation locations in Nigeria, the project would be completed by 2021.

    ‘‘By the time the project is finished in three years, there would be about 6,000 hectares of farmland and the Jigawa State Government also plans to key into the project that will benefit over 25,000 farmers,’’ the Minister said.

    In Jigawa, the President commissioned the 42-kilometre Tasheguwa-Guri Road and the 32-kilometre Abunabo-Kadira-Guri road constructed by the State government to facilitate easier movement and evacuation of farm produce.

    President Buhari also commissioned the 250,000 solar- powered water supply schemes.

    The project is one out of nine of such projects which will add nine million litres to daily water supply in Dutse and environs.

  • Delay in connection project stalls completion of Kashimbilla Dam – Official

    The Federal Ministry of Water Resources says the delay in the connection of power transmission lines to the national grid was responsible for non-completion of the Kashimbilla Multipurpose Dam in Taraba.

    Mr Lawal Muhammad, the Acting Director, Dams and Reservoir Operations, in the ministry, said this on Friday in an interview with our reporter in Abuja.

    Muhammad said that the dam and the power generating components of the project had been completed.

    He said that the outstanding aspect of the project was the erection of power transmission lines that would convey electricity to the national grid, adding, however, that this was the responsibility of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing.

    He said that work on water supply component of the dam had gone far, while work on the reticulation network had reached an advanced stage.

    Muhammad said that the irrigation component of the dam had been designed, while work on it had also reached an advanced stage.

    “We are studying the design; after the approval of the design for the contractor, we can then give him the go-ahead to start the construction,” he said.

    The acting director said that the dam had been completed, while its water had been impounded.

    He said that the dam project was also executed to control water surge whenever water was released from Lake Nyos in Cameroon.

    He said that the water, which was recently released from the lake, was intercepted by the dam in order to prevent flooding in the downstream parts of River Benue.

    “So now, instead of allowing the body of water to stay idle there, we can now utilise it to provide potable water for the people in Takum village and other areas of Taraba State,’’ he said.

    Muhammad said that when the dam was completed, it would have the capacity of generating 40 megawatts of hydro-power.

    He added that the power generation would be a plus to electricity supply to the citizens.

    Our reporter recalls that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) recently approved an additional N46.15 billion for the completion of the remaining 10 per cent of the Kashimbila Dam project.

    The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, described the project as one of the ministry’s flagship projects, adding that it would be completed and put to use in 12 months.

    “The dam was identified by the United Nations (UN) as one of the key projects that we need to do to provide a buffer against flooding along the River Benue, which of course you remember in 2012 was quite devastating.

    “Certainly, flood around the River Benue has always been a recurring decimal, in view of the dams which have been constructed by Cameroon. Whenever water is released unsystematically, it continues to cause a lot of damage.’’

    Adamu stressed that the Federal Government was more committed to completing all ongoing dam projects across the country, rather than embarking on the construction of new ones.

    He said that the Federal Government was also not in a hurry to take up new water projects, adding that the construction of new dams invariably involved a lot of planning and design.

    NAN