• To oversee completion via regional commissions
From Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Federal Government has announced a new policy direction that will prevent the proliferation of uncompleted and abandoned projects across the country, particularly those awarded by regional development commissions.
The Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Mamman, made the declaration yesterday during a meeting with the management board of the North East Development Commission (NEDC) in Abuja.
He emphasised that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is committed to ensuring that citizens enjoy real and timely dividends of democracy through projects that are feasible, completed, and impactful.
“You should focus on projects that you can implement within two to three years, complete them, and call Mr. President to commission them,” the Minister stated.
Mamman added that a mechanism would be introduced to track ongoing and new projects, aligning them with the goals of the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda. He stressed that development commissions were established to drive accelerated growth in underserved states and local governments.
“Our role is to ensure that you succeed, not to suffocate you,” Mamman said.
“The Ministry will monitor and track the progress of works and ensure that we do not have abandoned projects anywhere.”
The Minister also noted that due to the high expectations placed on the Ministry, priority will be given to infrastructure and social amenities with visible and lasting impact.
In response, Chairman of the NEDC Board, Major General Paul Tarfa (retd.), affirmed the Commission’s commitment to delivering on its mandate in alignment with the Federal Government’s development blueprint.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of the NEDC, Mohammed Alkali, said the meeting served as a platform to update the Ministry on the Commission’s activities. He disclosed that the NEDC’s long-term development strategy, built on four phases and 11 strategic pillars, was initially estimated to cost $80 billion.
“Our focus remains the recovery and rehabilitation of critical infrastructure in the North East region,” Alkali said.