The federal government has inaugurated the steering committee for the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria (SPIN) project to enhance national food security, water management, and climate resilience. The project, valued at $500 million and supported by the World Bank, aims to deliver large-scale multi-purpose infrastructure for irrigation and hydropower generation. Speaking at the inaugural meeting in Abuja on Friday, the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Joseph Utsev, who co-chairs the committee alongside the Minister of Power, said the initiative aligned with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
According to the minister, the SPIN project builds on the success of the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) project, which helped rehabilitate about 32,000 hectares of irrigation schemes and empowered Water Users Associations (WUAs) across the country. “Through this project, we are targeting 500,000 hectares of irrigated agriculture, 30 gigawatts of sustainable energy, and strengthened resilience to floods, droughts, and climate change. The project consists of four key components: institutional strengthening, irrigation modernisation, dam safety and operational improvements, and effective project management.
“It will be implemented under two models: Model 1, which focuses on federal government-managed schemes in collaboration with interested states, and Model 2, which supports state-owned irrigation schemes,” the minister said. He said that of the 34 states that expressed interest in participating in the project, 27 pledged to meet the readiness criteria, and 17 states have been confirmed qualified. Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation piloted the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria Project, commonly referred to as the “TRIMING Project”, as part of the Federal Government’s recent efforts to reform and improve the irrigation sector and its governance. The TRIMING Project pioneered transformative management initiatives and introduced the training and empowerment of the Water User Associations (WUAs) to participate in the Management, Operations, and Maintenance of the irrigation schemes. “The project recorded a remarkable success story, as the Management Operation and Maintenance model was used by the WUAs to rehabilitate about 32,000 ha of large-scale irrigation schemes, which significantly enhanced food production and created positive impacts on the livelihood of especially rural farmers.
The Federal Government, in an attempt to build on the results achieved under the TRIMING Project, strategically designed the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria Project in collaboration with the World Bank Group, which is supported by a loan facility of USD 500 million. The project seeks to address critical national priorities in the areas of water resources management, irrigation development, and hydropower generation through an integrated and multi-sectoral approach involving stakeholders at both the Federal and State levels under two models (Model 1 and Model 2). The project has four key components, which are patterned to enhance national capacity to facilitate the delivery of large-scale, multi-purpose infrastructure for irrigation and hydropower, while ensuring sustainable water governance. These components include: Institutional Strengthening; Irrigation Modernization; Dam Safety and Operational Improvements, and effective Project Management.
“The project has a clear institutional arrangement that defines the roles to be played by each entity as contained in the project operation documents. The Steering Committee will serve as the apex policy and decision-making body for the Project, and so the inaugural meeting is a pre-determined factor for the commencement of the project.” Meanwhile, in a remark, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen Abubakar Kyari, noted hat the project supported by the World Bank is very cardinal in food production and also boosting electricity, which are essential for food production and the project would go a long way. He also added that the population growth of Nigeria is projected to reach 450 million people by 2050, which is 25 years from now. “I am happy that we are taking a lot of steps and major decisions are taken, support from development partners to assist Nigeria cater for its citizens”, he said.
The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu represented by the Permanent Secretary, Mahmuda Mamman, while noting the need for hydropower generation as catalyst for development, cheaper and can be there for minimum of 30 years assured commitment by his Ministry to the SPIN project. “Furthermore, hydropower plants are critical in balancing the power grid. They can quickly adjust their output to meet the long-term demand, especially when it comes to clearance or in case of failure from other sources. This ability to gradually go up or down maintains system stability and voltage level and ensures quick recovery after outages. Additionally, hydropower facilities typically have lower operational and maintenance costs compared to other power generation technologies. Once established, it can run for a minimum of 30 years.
“As the co-chair of the Project Steering Committee and key implementing partner, I hereby affirm the Ministry of Power’s commitment to the successful implementation of this SPIN project”, he assured. Meanwhile, in his presentation about the project, the National Coordinator, SPIN, Engr Ipinlaye Olaiya, said the SPIN project targets 500,000 hectares of land for irrigation. However, Olaiye made it clear that implementation of the project cannot be done only by the Federal Government but in collaboration with the State governments as well. He also added that States are to enact Water User Association, WUA, Act for the sustainability of the project.
Mr Utsev said the states satisfied three key requirements: enacting a WUA law at the state level, allocating budgetary provisions for WUA operations and maintenance, and establishing counterpart funding. He noted that the steering committee, composed of ministers from relevant sectors and commissioners from participating states, would serve as the apex policy and decision-making body for the project. The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, described the SPIN project as timely, noting that it would build on the achievements of the TRIMING initiative to further transform Nigeria’s agricultural sector. Kyari commended the World Bank for its continued support towards sustainable development across various sectors, but emphasised the need to focus more on measuring concrete outcomes.
CREDIT: BUSINESSNEWSREPORTERS