The Senate Committee on Water Resources has lauded the federal government’s effort in the construction of Kashimbila multipurpose dam and other laudable projects embarked upon by the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.
Senator Joshua Lidani representing Gombe South Senatorial District, who also is a member of the Senate Committee on Water Resources made the commendation during budget defence by the Minister of Water Resources Mrs. Sarah Reng Ochekpe in the National Assembly Complex yesterday.
The Senator in a statement signed by deputy director, information at the ministry, Mr Boade Akinola, and made available to Blueprint yesterday, said that Kashimbila multipurpose dam was a project that if completed would benefit not only the immediate communities but the entire Taraba state.
He said the dam was one of the largest projects being undertaken by the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, noting that apart from provision of water supply and irrigation potentials of the dam, it would also serve as reservoir to contain the water expected to come from Cameroon as a result of any eventual breakdown of Lake Nyos.
In his remarks, the chairman Senate Committee on Water Resource Senator Heinekin Lokpobiri also commended the Minister of Water Resources for 2013 budget implementation. He said construction of dams with hydropower component as well as provision of potable drinking water were projects that require huge amount of money and this has been the major challenge in the water sector.
In her remarks, the Minister of Water Resources Mrs. Sarah Reng Ochekpe said that the present administration was committed to provision of water to Nigerians. However she said water project are expensive and that FG could not do it alone, hence President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan convened a Presidential Summit on Water in February 2013, to seek for alternative funding of water sector projects. During the summit, MOU was signed between the ministry and Bank of Industry to provide soft loans to the private stakeholders in the water sector.
