The Rivers State Government has approved the sum of N220million for water projects in two additional local government areas under the European Union, United Nations Children Fund’s Niger Delta Support Programme (NDSP).
The General Manager, Rivers State Rural Water and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), Mr. Napoleon Adah said this at a two-day media dialogue on Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), organised by the Child Rights Bureau of the Federal Ministry of Information/Culture in collaboration with the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) in Port Harcourt.
The EU/UNICEF Niger Delta Support Programme (NDSP) water scheme is currently being implemented in Opobo/Nkoro and Akuku-Toru local government areas of the state.
Adah, who spoke on the topic: “Role of the State Governments in the EU/UNICEF Niger Delta Support Programme (NDSP)”, said that the state government was working hard to ensure that the project is replicated in two additional local government areas in Rivers State.
The RUWASSA GM also said that the government has provided a conducive environment for contractors handling the projects in both Opobo/Nkoro and Akuku-Toru Local Government Areas to execute the projects without any hitches.
He said that the programme would not only check water-borne diseases in the state but would go a long way in checking conflicts and crises in the state.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Government has called for more support from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) for the construction of more water schemes in the state.
The acting Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Water Resources, Engr. Emmanuel Amatemeso, who said this in an interview at the seminar, said that the state government is working hard to ensure that more rural communities get water projects.
The permanent secretary, who represented the Commissioner for Water Resources, Prof Kaniye Ebeku, also said that the present administration in the state has set up institutions to address the challenges of water shortages in the state.
