Benue state Commissioner for Lands, Survey and Solid Minerals, Mr. Bernard Unenge, has disclosed that work on the state’s Geographic Information Service will be completed in December.
The commissioner, who made the disclosure in an interview in Makurdi on Monday, said work on the N6.5 billion project started in February 2020 and is expected to provide space for the automated land administration agency in the state.
Unenge described the complex as Governor Samuel Ortom’s signature project, adding that it would ensure seamless land administration and generate revenue for the government.
He explained that apart from the complex, three service points will be established across the state to ease the process of land administration and management.
“We have marked Gboko, Otukpo, and Adikpo to serve as zonal centers so that we can cover the entire state. The Adikpo service point is supposed to cater for the people within the zone A, and the Otukpo center for zone C. The one in Gboko is going to be a supporting facility for the main center, which is going to take care of zone B and the entire state,” he added.
The commissioner said already, the government had engaged a facility manager for the complex to ensure proper maintenance of the property.
“We have employed a facility manager who is an engineer; he started the project from scratch and knows the ICT facilities and the structural components of the project. We are hopeful that with him on site we should be able to bring about a plan for the maintenance of the facility,” he said.
Unenge said 80 percent of the staff has been trained to handle the ICT facilities that would be deployed for the smooth operation of the geographic information service.
