Community leaders and stakeholders in Ataba Kingdom, Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, have commended the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for executing the Kaa-Ataba Road and Bridge project, describing it as a historic intervention that has ended decades of isolation for riverine communities.
The project connects Kaa in Khana Local Government Area to Ataba in Andoni, providing a major transport link for communities that previously depended largely on wooden boats to access markets, schools and healthcare facilities.
Speaking in Ataba, the Head Chief of Ogogo Village, Chief John Ekwang, expressed delight over the project, describing the bridge as the longest in the Niger Delta.
He recalled that residents had endured years of hardship, with children risking their lives to cross rivers to school while traders and farmers frequently lost perishable goods due to transportation difficulties.
“For many years, we cried for this bridge. Our children risked their lives crossing the river to go to school. Our women lost their fish and farm produce because there was no road. Today, NDDC has wiped our tears,” he said.
Read Also: agbalaja-land-dispute-woji-monarch-warns-public-against-dealing-with-ihunwo
Ekwang described the project as the first major government intervention that had made the community feel remembered and assured the commission of the people’s cooperation in protecting the infrastructure.
Similarly, the Chairman of the Ataba Elders Forum, Mr ThankGod Egart, said the bridge would transform the socio-economic activities of Andoni communities by reducing transportation costs, boosting trade and improving security.
He noted that the improved road connection would enable residents to transport fish and agricultural produce to markets in Port Harcourt and Bori more efficiently.
Egart also commended President Bola Tinubu and the NDDC Board and Management for delivering the project, which he said would improve access to education and healthcare while reducing transportation-related risks.
The Kaa-Ataba Bridge project comprises a 1.2-kilometre main bridge supported by 57 piers, a 250-metre second bridge with 15 piers, and a two-kilometre dual-carriageway road linking Khana and Andoni local government areas.
Meanwhile, the NDDC, in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Wednesday by its Director of Corporate Affairs, Seledi Thompson-Wakama, said the bridge was among several legacy projects being delivered under its current Board and Management.
The commission, led by Chairman Chiedu Ebie and Managing Director Dr Samuel Ogbuku, said the projects were being executed in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
