By: Monday Danladi, Bauchi
The North East Stakeholders Forum for Sustainable Development (NESFSD),
has expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Managing Director of Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPADEC), Alhaji Abubakar Sadiq Yelwa, for the release of ₦80bn to mitigate the impact of flooding in vulnerable communities.
The commendation was contained in a statement signed by the National Chairman of the NESFSD, Alhaji Murtala Sule Jalingo and the Secretary General of the Forum, Comrade Danladi Bawa Gombe, which was distributed to.newsmen in Bauchi on Wednesday.
The group explained that the intervention came at the right time for the right purpose which will definitely serve as a proactive step callin6 for more funds to effectively control and address the looming challenge.
The group stated the money will.be judiciously utilised to reduce the the flooding caused torrential rains threatening widespread flash floods across HYPPADEC states and Nigeria.
The group also commended the examplary leadership always exhibited by the Managing Director who always pursued the Commission’s projects with vigour to the conclusion through regular review of all ongoing projects, assessing programme implementations and always comeing up with strategies for improving service delivery across member-states.
The statement stressed that Abubakar Yelwa’ s approach towards ensuring quality service delivery always gives genuine opportunity for him to evaluate the performance of various departments and divisions, identify operational challenges and receive feedback from field offices to strengthen project implementation.
The group added that HYPPADEC under Abubakar Yelwa is commendable because it has sustained yearly flood preparedness campaign by embarking on early sensitisation programmes several months before the onset of the rainy season in flood-prone communities, and it’s several intervention to its catchment communities in Gombe and Taraba States in the subregion, particularly through its tailored approaches to addressing local needs which always helped to improve the welfare and livelihoods of host communities in Gombe and Taraba State,
The group commended the Commission’s effort to mitigate ecological damage arising from hydroelectric power operations and to promote sustainable development in host communities.
The statement further contained commendation that in Gombe State, HYPPADEC supply of 1,100 life jackets, the provision of an operational flying boat to Kupto Community, installation of solar streetlights, construction of solar-powered boreholes, desilting of drainages, construction of classrooms, and support for indigent students through the payment of National Examination Council, NECO, fees.
“We are happy the commission under Yelwa is living up to the objectives of its establishment, noting that unlike many organisations that focus largely on internal development,
HYPPADEC prioritised interventions that directly impact people’s daily lives,” the group added.
The group expressed happiness over the delivery of a 33-seater boat, safety facilities in Taraba State, stating that,
“Taraba State benefitted with other interventions that included the distribution of 32 power tiller machines to farming cooperatives, provision of two flying boats along the Lau–Karim Lamido and Ibi–Wukari axes to enhance emergency response and mobility, and desilting of blocked drainages and culverts covering about 40,000 linear metres across several local government areas to mitigate flooding.”
The Commission also supplied and installed transformers in parts of Jalingo and supported education by paying NECO external examination fees for students from power-producing communities,and the deployment of two water buses to improve transportation for residents of riverine communities in Taraba State.
The group stated that the N80bn intervention will prevent Dams and bridges in the benefitting areas from collapse or being washed away by flood.
It will be recalled that Nigeria authorities cautioned that millions of Nigerians living in low-lying and vulnerable communities could face severe flooding if the current downpour persists.
Leave a Comment