By Abdulrahman A. Abdulrauf Katsina Katsina state Government is expending about N3.689bn on the provision of infrastructure in the water, health, and education sectors in the state.
A breakdown of the fi gure shows that N1.9bn will be used for the rehabilitation of Jiwa Dam to step up and increase water supply to people of the state, while the sum of N1.5bn would be used for the rehabilitation and equipment in the General Hospitals located in Katsina, Daura, Funtua and Kankia.
The balance of N289 million, according to the state government, will go into the construction and rehabilitation of structures and provision of equipment for a few secondary schools across the state.
These details were provided by some top government offi cials while conducting visiting journalists on a tour of projects executed by the Aminu Bello Masari administration since coming on board. Addressing newsmen at the Jiwa Dam, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, Engineer Sani Umar, recalled that the rehabilitation work becomes necessary in view of the increasing demand which the present capacity of the dam could not march.
He said: “His Excellency, Rt. Hon Aminu Bello Masari, being a water person himself, having retired here in 1992 as Assistant General Manager before joining politics, has graciously approved the rehabilitation of this project which will cost about N1.9bn. “It might interest you to know that at the inception of the project in 1975, it was designed for 50,000 cubic meters per day, which is a far cry from the current demand of 150,000 cubic meters. Th e reality now is that even the dam cannot meet the initial capacity because of the failing equipment.
So, obviously, there is need for rehabilitation.” Also speaking at the General Hospital, Katsina, the Permanent Secretary in charge of the Health Ministry, Dr. Kabiru Mustapha, disclosed that the N1.5bn sum was the cost of the rehabilitation, erection of new structures as well as the purchase of new equipment for the hospitals.
“Th e re-modelling and redesigning of the General Hospitals are being carried out to include the radiology centre, Out Patient Department and Accident and Emergency, both for reconfi guring. Th is will cost the sum of N1.5bn for both the construction and equipment of the hospitals. “While this has been completed and handed over to the state government, the three others are all at various stages of completion.
Th e equipment are on their way and we shall be taking the delivery soon. But as I talk to you, about 620 personnel, made up of 55 medical doctors, including 6 consultants, are on ground ready to take off , while the nurses are about 153. Th e remaining fi gure I can’t readily give you now,” he said.
On education, Director of Works in the state Ministry of Works, Malam Aliyu Gambo Mashi, who briefed journalists at Government Girls Science Secondary School, Jiwa, said government was carrying out the construction, renovation and rehabilitation works of the school in two phases. Gambo said, “All rehabilitation works in the schools are in two phases. In phase one, the rehabilitation is N121m, the new hostel costs N50m, while the total cost of Phase 11 is N118m.”
Welcoming the team, the school’s principal, Hajia Hajara Abdulkadir, who commended the APC-led government for giving the school a facelift, called for the recruitment of more teachers to beef up the 56-staff capacity for greater improvement.
