FG to secure $75m W/Bank loan for water supply to communities
By Kayode Tokede with News Agency
The Federal Government has commenced dialogue with the World Bank to secure a $75 million loan to provide water in communities nationwide.
The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, made the disclosure at an interactive session with media executives in Abuja on Thursday.
He said that government plans to commence a pilot programme of the water supply in six cities in the country. He, however, did not name the cities to benefit.
“We’re trying to get the states to invest in water as part of our plan to implement the water resources master plan.”
The lack of access to potable water had been a major problem for Nigerian communities for centuries.
The development has resulted to poor hygiene in most of the rural communities where majority of Nigerian citizens reside.
The minister said that government was also seeking fund to tackle the perennial flooding along River Niger and River Benue.
He defended the penchant of government to build dams in the northern areas of the country, arguing that Southern Nigeria does not need dams because the area has enough rainfall all year round.
Citing Oji River in Enugu State, Adamu spoke of a well that was built in the town in 1913, saying that the well is still spilling water and constituting hazards to residents.
The minister pointed out that provision of potable water was entirely the responsibility of state governments and local government councils, noting that the federal government is intervening to provide water for the populace.
He stressed the need for the public, especially media practitioners, to support the Water Resources Bill being pushed by the federal government.
“The Water Resources Bill must be passed for the nation to move forward in the water resources sector,” Adamu stated.
Fidelity bank reiterates commitment to non-oil export business
Fidelity Bank Plc has once again demonstrated its resolve to promote and catalyze export businesses in Nigeria with the tenth stream of the Export Management Program (EMP) scheduled to hold at the Lagos Business School (LBS) from June 14-18, 2021.
Recent developments in the global market and local oil sector have heightened the need for Nigeria to diversify its economy away from oil. Exports help improve foreign exchange earnings, create employment opportunities, engender wealth creation and sustainable poverty reduction.
To boost non-oil exports and build sustainable export capabilities for Nigerian businesses, Fidelity Bank Plc, Lagos Business School (LBS), and Nigerian Export Promotions Council (NEPC) initiated the EMP.
This 5-day programme is designed to equip participants with the knowledge, tools, and skills required to develop their export business in line with global standards and take advantage of the AFCFTA.
Launched in 2016, the EMP is a sector focused capacity building programme aimed specifically to deliver impactful, world-class export management education to aspiring and existing players in the nonoil export sector of the Nigerian economy.
The programme which prepares participants for effective play in the international non-oil export markets and the larger export markets in general, has continued to raise the bar of capacity building in exports in Nigeria.
Its unique curriculum is structured to take participants through courses bordering strategically on product development for export; developing linkages with customers in importing countries; understanding the various export processes, accompanying documentation and other requirements in Nigeria and key importing countries; export products storage; quality assurance, branding and packaging, sourcing and supply chain management, logistics and shipping, export finance, business ethics, etc.
