Political and community leaders in Kogi East Senatorial District have said they would remain eternally grateful to President Bola Tinubu and Governor Usman Ododo for the socio- economic infrastructural development the zone witnessed in the last three years.
The chairman of Ankpa local government area, Ademu Yahaya, led the commendation of President Tinubu and the state governor as the Renewed Hope Ambassadors and the Presidential Communications Team continued their inspection of federal and state governments’ legacy projects in the state.
According to a statement by the spokesman of the Renewed Hope Ambassadors, Tunde Rahman, in Ankpa, the team inspected a 12-kilometre internal road with a 24-kilometre double -side drainage network undertaken by the Ododo administration.
Addressing the team, Kogi State commissioner for Environment and Ecological Management, Joseph Oluwasegun, said the road network was a legacy project implemented by the state government through the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi Arid Landscape (ACReSAL) – a World Bank counterpart-funding project.
The commissioner, who also chairs the state ACReSAL, said the project comprising land reclamation, stabilization and channelization is a strategic intervention by the state government to reclaim degraded environment, control erosion and free more land for agricultural and other economic purposes, thereby enhancing food sufficiency and security.
“I want to first commend Governor Usman Ahmed Ododo for always according counterpart funds for ACReSAL projects across the state utmost priority.
“The World Bank will only release its funds when the state government provides its counterpart funds for compensation and other ancillaries.
“Governor Ododo is one of the governors that do not default in the provision of counterpart fund,” the commissioner said.
He added that the project has improved livelihoods in the area and reduced poverty in no small way through the micro-loan component,
which rural farmers and cooperative groups have immensely benefited from.
Oluwasegun described the intervention as a campaign promise to the people of Kogi East, which Governor Ododo has kept, adding that similar projects are ongoing in other senatorial zones of the state because of its impact and the multiplier effect for the citizens.
He said over $2 million had been disbursed to cooperative groups in the community through the intervention, thereby reducing poverty and improving their livelihoods.
Earlier, the chairman of Ankpa local government described the erosion control intervention project in the area as the largest government project ever conducted in the local government.
