By; Abdull-Azeez Ahmed Kadir, Kaduna.
Kaduna State Government has approved the scaling up of Sanitation, Hygiene and Water in Nigeria (SHAWN II) projects to eight additional Local Governments with counterpart fund of five hundred and sixty million naira (N560M).
The decision was taken Monday at the weekly Executive Council Meeting presided by Governor Nasir Ahmad El-rufai in Sir Kashim Ibrahim House, Kaduna.
According to the State Commissioner of Water Resources, Engineer Suleiman Aliyu Lere, the balance of five hundred and sixty million naira would come from the development partners; Department for International Development (DFID) and United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) which he said are already available.
The benefitting Local Governments are Jaba, Zangon Kataf, Jema’a, Kudan, Soba, Lere, Giwa and Kajuru. This is in addition to Chikun, Kubau and Kachia that have been enjoying the projects in the preceding year bringing the total to twelve Councils.
Lere said the project entails provision of potable water and sanitation facilities to rural schools, hospital, markets among others.
The 560 million naira he reiterated was provided for in the 2016 budget. The projects would commence immediately as the development partners have already supplied certain components of the materials he assured.
In another development, the Council also approved the payments of two months; April and May salary to Local Government Staff who were not paid due to hitches observed during the verification exercises.
The Commissioner for Local Government, Muhammed Bashir Sa’id disclosed this in a chart with newsmen after the Council meeting.
