The Plateau State Government has signed a contract worth N13.7 billion with a Chinese company, China Geochemical Company (CGC), for the rehabilitation of the Laminga and Yakubu Gowon dams.
During the signing ceremony at the Government House, Little Rayfield, Jos, on Friday, Plateau Secretary to Government Samuel Jatau said the water project demonstrates the government’s desire to provide water to the people of the state.
He said the initial contract was signed by the last administration but was abandoned.
Jatau said that “we inherited the contract from the last administration in 2019, but no serious action was taken due to lack of counterpart payment.
He said that as an agricultural state, apart from domestic use, water is much needed for agricultural projects, adding that although the government had received severe criticism over the water problem, it had tried to mitigate the problem using other means.
“We are all aware that water is life, and without water we cannot prosper. Agriculture is one of our focus areas as a government and we need water for agriculture and irrigation. I know this government has faced criticism from the public that we don’t care about water, but I think part of that is politics, because even without this contract being signed, or without this project moving forward, the government has tried to mitigate the water problem by using other means such as acquiring trucks, tankers and drilling wells.”
He asked contractors to be aware that the contract has deadlines and must be completed in 2026.
According to him, the contract has a value chain, as people will be employed as workers and contractors.
The Chinese company’s CEO, Ke You Cheng, promised that the company would honor the terms of the contract.
Water Resources Commissioner Bashir Lawandi said the government will mitigate the effects of the rehabilitation of the two major dams by using water tankers to supply water to communities in the state..