Nigeria Content Online

The Vice President, Namadi Sambo, has
said there is a need to accelerate the prioritization of projects to be
executed to meet up with the funding guidelines laid by international
financial institutions.

He stated this yesterday during a meeting on the funding of infrastructure in the country, at State House Abuja.

Mr. Sambo said “time is not on our
side, we are expecting to have our first visit by the President of the
African Development Bank (ADB), Donald Keberuka, on the 23rd of this
month and in line with our plan to fund some of our infrastructure
projects through this financing agencies, it has become expedient to
expedite action for their presentation to the Institution.” The VP
disclosed that the ADB has a three year cycle of concessional funding
and this year falls within the period.

“We are within the cycle for the Bank to consider our programmes for concessional funding,” he noted.

He therefore, directed that the
documentation of the identified projects be made available, for
presentation to the ADB President during his visit and should also be
forwarded to other international financial institutions like the
Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, the European Investment
Bank (EIB), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and also the
Nordic countries.

The Projects identified were the
East-West and the South-West Gas truck lines; the East-West Standard
Gauge Line; the Niger Delta Costal Road, the Second Niger Bridge; the
Benin- Obajana road; Zungeru Hydro Power Project; and Itsi Small
Hydropower Dam, among others.

The Vice President tasked the
Infrastructure Concession Regulator Commission (ICRC) to include the
Yen Credit Facility and the EIB, who have shown readiness to fund
projects in the power sector like the Jabba and the Kanji Hydropower
Plants among the financial institutions to be approached.

He also said the World Bank is also ready to fund projects under Public Private Partnership.

He explained that Brazil plans to fund
the construction of the Mambilla Hydropower Project, while the Islamic
Development Bank, the Zungeru Hydropower Plant.

Mr. Sambo further tasked all relevant
Ministries to immediately conduct studies on all other identified
projects for presentation to the international financial institutions
for consideration.

Speaking, the Director General of the
ICRC, Mansur Ahmed, disclosed that the agency had categorized
identified projects into completed, ongoing, pre-contract and planned.
He said the projects will be funded through regular budget, enhanced
budget; bonds; concessionary funds and Public Private Partnerships
(PPP).

He said the completed projects are Waya
Small Hydropower Plant (0.15 megawatts); the Mbowo Small Hydropower
Plant ().125 megawatts) and the Gurara Small Hydropower Plant (30
megawatts).

The ongoing projects are Abuja-Lokoja,
Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe
International Airport, Abuja, and those in Enugu, Kano and Port
Harcourt.

Other ongoing projects include the
Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja Kaduna Standard Gauge line. Projects that are
under the Pre-contract category are the Zungeru Hydropower Dam (700
megawatts), the Second Niger Bridge and the Loko-Oweto Bridge.

Those that are planned are the Mambilla
Hydropower Plant (2600 megawatts), the Gurara Phase II Hydropower Plant
(350 megawatts), Coal Power Plants at Enugu and Benue, Tiga, Dadin
Kowa, Chalawa, Itsi, Oyan, Ikere Gorge, Bakori small hydropower plants.

The East-West Standard Gauge Line;
Jakuru and Osara access roads, Oza-Nagogo-Agbor-Benin Road,
Borom-Nasarawa-Abaji Road and the rehabilitation of Okene-Ajaokuta Road.

Present at the meeting were the Minister of National Planning, Dr.
Shamsudeen Usman, Minister of Finance, Dr. Olusegun Aganga, Minister of
State Power, Nuhu Somo Wya, Minister of Works, Sanusi Dagash, Minister
of Transport, Yusuf Suleiman and other government functionaries.</