Again, Gov AbdulRazaq seeks immediate dredging of River Niger

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has again called on the Federal government to expedite action on the dredging of the Rivers Niger and Benue to check the annual flooding and human losses along their banks and tributaries as well promote food security.

The Governor expressed concerns over the human and material damages the annual flooding inflicts on the country, especially communities living along their tributaries.

The Governor spoke when he received a delegation from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation led by the Minister Prof Joseph Terlumun Utsev on a courtesy visit to the Government House in Ilorin.

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“One of the main challenges I want your Ministry to take up is the dredging of the River Niger, Benue down to the Delta. It is essential for (the Ministry) to start that immediately, because of the damages it is causing to the national economy and food security,” he said.

“Issues of internally displaced persons are of concerns. People are leaving their traditional abodes because of the water level. We know that on both banks of River Niger and Benue, rice is being farmed a lot. Two years ago, we saw how OLAM Farm in Benue State was devastated. The issue of dredging is not just about the navigation. It is also about agriculture and building the marine economy from those rivers.”

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AbdulRazaq commended the Ministry’s usual support for the country, particularly the state, on the success recorded in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programmes and Open Defecation Free (ODF).

He also sought the assistance of the Ministry for smooth implementation of a water master plan, which the state government is proposing, saying their collaboration is key to achieving the set goal.

“I commend your Ministry for the push on ODF. When we came in 2019, Nigeria overtook Bangladesh as one of the worst cases in ODF, and so we became number one in the World. Kwara was number one in North Central and last worst case in Nigeria. But with the efforts we made with your Ministry, we’ve gone up and we are no longer the worst case in ODF. We thank your Ministry’s support and engagement in that period,” he said.

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“We also want to collaborate with and seek assistance from the Ministry on our new water master plan for Kwara.”