FEC okays N9.44bn for roads, power projects

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved contracts worth N9.44 billion for roads and power projects across the country.

This was disclosed on Wednesday after the 31st virtual federal cabinet meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chamber of the State House, Abuja.

The outcomes of the meeting were announced by the Ministers of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo; Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed; Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, as well as the Minister of State, Power, Goddy Jedi-Agba, while briefing State House reporters.

Trade and Investment

Adebayo said the council approved a N50 million variation of power contract in the Kano Free Trade Zone.

He said the contract was awarded in 2018 for underground cabling for power project within the Kano Free Trade Zone but unfortunately it was not completed before certain specification changes were made.

He said: “So, the contractor requested a variation of six percent increase of the initial contract sum, which amounted to about N50 million.

“Council has approved that variation and the job which has reached 93 percent completion will be completed within the next six months.”

Adebayo said council also approved another contract for the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority for the purchase of a property in Lagos to be used as their Lagos zonal office.

“As you are aware, Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority is responsible for all the free trade zones in the country, the value of the free trade zones in the Lagos area alone is at about $30 billion.

“So, for proper collation and oversight of these free trade zones, we felt that it is only right that we have the zonal office of the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority in the Lagos area and that has been approved by council.”

The minister said the council further ratified the National Quality Policy to ensure goods exported out of Nigeria are accepted in the countries they are being exported to.

According to him: “For a long time, Nigerian exporters have been suffering because of lack of quality of their goods.

“We felt that it was high time we actually had a policy which will create a situation whereby standard of the Nigerian goods that are exported would be raised such that rejection would stop.

“This policy will create a situation whereby the government and the private sector will be able to collaborate to set up quality testing centers, testing labs which we hope will have accreditation with international centers, such that any good that has been approved to have met the standard, would be of international standard,” he added.

Adebayo, who said the council also approved the Nigerian/Hungarian Trade Agreement, explained that the whole essence was for Nigerian businessmen to have access to exporting their goods to Hungary and to further increase trade between the two countries.

Transformation

While speaking, Fashola said the council approved the contract for the design and deployment of a contract performance and compliance for highway and road management system for N203,845,332.50.

He said: “This is an information and communication technology device being procured by the ministry in order to improve its capacity to monitor not only contract performance but also maintenance of its roads and to empower not only its 36 controllers in each of the state of the federation but also the six zonal directors to improve our service delivery.

“The importance of deploying ICT now perhaps would be better appreciated when it is understood that we have over 13,000 kilometers of road networks at different stages of construction or rehabilitation as at the close of December 2020.

“And those 13,000 plus kilometers are manifest in over 700 different contracts.

“I continue to explain this that some of our roads are so long that we have five different contractors.

“Like the Kano-Maiduguri road for example, we have five different contractors there, Benin to Lokoja, we have five different contractors there and so on and so forth.

“So, we have different contracts to manage and so we are deploying ICT there.

“Upon full deployment, one of the things you will see is that, citizens will be expected to become army of reporters providing us with information so that we can respond more quickly.

“Because, this will be a web based reporting and monitoring system,” Fashola said.

Road repairs

The minister said the council also approved the ratification of the emergency roads repair done in Zamfara State in 2016 caused by a heavy rainfall that washed away Gumi bridge and affected Dakitawa, Kebbi-Sokoto State border, Gusau to Talata Mafara – Sokoto border.

He said; “the contract was awarded under the public procurement act in emergency situations as provisional contracts.

“So, we had to go through procurement process, file reports of completion and then come to seek ratification.

“So, the work had since been completed but the paper work has now led us here. And the ratification was granted today by FEC for N7,923,706,078.86.”

The minister of state for power, Goddy Jedi-Agba, said council approved two months extension and the sum of N124.2 million for the variation of contract for the construction of sub-stations projects in Lanlate, Oyo State and Abeokuta, Ogun State.

He said: “The contract was awarded because of the topography of that area.

“The topography is tricky and so there is a need to upgrade and make the facilities usable and accessible by the people.

“So, if we have those two substations fixed, the transmission of power will be stepped up in that area and the whole of Ogun State and most of the South West will have improved power.”

Power

The council was notified of the progress in the metering Programme in the country.

Jedi-Agba said: “You know the President has approved the metering Programme for the whole country.

“So, the Yola DISCO wrote to notify us that they have commenced this process and have entered into agreement with Meter Asset Provider (MAP).

So, this is ongoing and we assure you that the present directive regarding metering of the entire country will soon be completed and services will improved.”

The Minister of Information and Culture said the council approved the sum of N1.146,659,500 billion for the award of contract for the installation of solar street lighting for the Karshi-Jikwoyi dual carriage road in Abuja.

Mohammed, who spoke on behalf of the Minister of the federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello, said the contract was awarded to Messrs Bassman Nigeria Limited with completion period of six months.

He said: “This is a 20 kilometer street lighting project and the area host some very strategic institutions such as the Treasury Academy, new Correctional Center which is under construction and it also houses the Federal Science College, the Armed Forces Post Service Housing Scheme in addition to Police Housing Scheme among others.

“Apart from beautifying the area, it also provides better security for the area.

“It means the SDG goal number 11 will be met and at the same time the global energy policy.”