An international donor agency funded project, Kaduna State Revitalisation and Reintegration Infrastructure Project (KARRIP) has set aside $100 million for the infrastructural and social facelift of poor communities in Kaduna metropolis.
The Project Director KARRIP, Professor Rachael Okoeguale, who disclosed this while commissioning the KARRIP Project office in Kaduna on Friday, said the Project will run in two phases of three years each. Speaking further, she said the social development focused project, is predominantly about economic empowerment, improving the value, the lifestyle, access to health, access to education and access to socio infrastructure, which will be supporting the seven-point agenda of Governor Uba Sani.
“KARRIP is based predominantly in what people call slums in the urban settlement. It is a total upgrade of the social infrastructure along with the education and health parameters for those settlements. We will be starting the Project in Malali, Danbushiya, Keke and others. A lot of our works will be about roads, schools, new clinics, new hospitals and we will be rebuilding homes as well.
“KARRIP is a donor funded project. And the very first phase of the Project will cost a $100million and we are still open to partnership with the donor community, not only the social development partners, but even corporate organizations to support the work we are doing,” she said.
Also speaking, KARRIP State Project Coordinator, Arc. Sani Abbas explained that the project, which is designed to bridge the development gap between the rich and urban poor, aims to raise the living standard of the Kaduna residents to international standards by 80 percent in the next three years.
“It has been discovered that, no matter the amount of roads, infrastructures and social amenities provided in the Government Reserved Areas (GRAs), the urban centers still perform below the international good living standard.
“So, when you revitalize the urban slums and reintegrate it, you will see that in the next three years, we can come out and say that 70, 80 or 90 percent of people in Kaduna are living above the international good living standard. The project will focus on the four metropolitan local governments in Kaduna, that is Kaduna North, Kaduna South, Chikun and parts of Igabi.
“In Kaduna North, we have Malali Badarawa, Kwaru, Ungwan Shanu and other places. In Chikun, we have Romi, Danbushiya, Keke and others. In Kaduna South, we have Kakuri and in Igabi, we have Mando and some parts of Kawo. The Project is in two phases. The phase 1 is three years and phase 2 is also three years. So, we are expected to achieve this first phase before the end of 2027,” he said.
