Kwara to Execute $60m Projects Across 16 Councils

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Projects worth $60 million are to be executed by the Kwara State government in phases across the 16 local government areas of the state.

This disclosure was made on Wednesday by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq when he flagged off the construction of 700 kilometres of rural roads under the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP).

Speaking through the Deputy Governor, Mr Kayode Alabi, he further disclosed that the projects are being carried out in collaboration with international donor agencies, including the World Bank Group.

According to him, the sum of N400 million counterpart funds for the RAAMP has been paid by the state government to make the huge interventions possible.

He expressed confidence that when completed, the projects will boost economic activities of the state, especially the councils, which will experience a spike in their respective Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

“Under this project, the administration will upgrade 125 kilometres of road to asphalt or sealed materials, carry out spot improvement on 450 kilometres of road and routine maintenance on 700 kilometres of road.

“The government will also carry out backlog maintenance on 200 kilometres of road, five river crossings will be fixed, while some existing markets will be upgraded to hubs,” Mr AbdulRazaq said while performing the flag off of 5.2km Alapa-Arobadi pilot road in Asa local government area.

Speaking further, he said, “All of these are to be done in partnership with the World Bank and other international donor agencies. The projects are worth US$60m and would be spread across the 16 local government areas of the state in phases.

“I commend the World Bank and the International Donor Agencies for their support. I also thank the Ministry of Works and Transport, the State Project Monitoring Committee (SPMC) and the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU), among others, for their hard work and commitment,” he said.

“We cannot claim to promote food security or seek investments from outside when the roads that lead to farmlands and other agricultural settlements are in bad shape.

“We cannot claim to seek a brighter future for future generations when our schools and other enabling infrastructure are in shambles,” the Governor said further.