Abia State government has announced a low-key 3rd anniversary to be marked with commissioning and flag off of more projects without pomp and pageantry.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, who disclosed this to journalists in Umuahia said, “The 3rd anniversary will enable the state government to flag off new projects and commission completed ones across the three senatorial zones of the state.”
The Commissioner accompanied by his Power and Public Utilities counterpart, Ikechukwu on Monday, also disclosed that Abia has been selected as one of the six states and the FCT, to benefit from the $700 million Sustainable Urban and Rural Water Supply Sanitation, and Hygiene (SURWASH) project of the World Bank.
Kanu attributed the increasing global recognitions and sponsorships to the State to the unprecedented transformation under the leadership of Governor Alex Otti, adding, “The USAID Small Town WASH project, which was suspended by the American government some time ago, has resumed under a new funder, Mercy Corps.”
The USAID project, according to him, would facilitate the rehabilitation of both Ubakala and Ariaria water schemes in Umuahia and Aba.
In the area of power, Prince Kanu said the Abia State Electricity Regulatory Agency (ASERA), has issued three interim licenses to three companies, namely, New Era, Aba power and Geometric Power, for power generation and distribution, even as he disclosed that the Ohafia Power Restoration Project has reached 85% completion, would be completed before the end of the second quarter of this year.
He revealed the installation of a 1.8 megawatt microgrid solar power project to power the central bus terminals in Umuahia and Aba in line with the government’s integrated energy transition programme demonstrated in the acquisition of the electric buses for the Abia Green Shuttle Bus Service Scheme.
He said Governor Otti has approved the appointment of Professor Nneka Chioma Okoronkwo as the new Chief Medical Director, CMD, of Abia State University Teaching Hospital, ABSUTH, as well as Dr Nkiru Chidia Maduekwe, as the Project Coordinator for NEWMAP under the Ministry of Environment.
Contributing to the Commissioner for Power and Public Utilities, Monday, affirmed that the SURWASH project entails rehabilitating the water schemes to provide potable water to the people around Ubakala and Ariaria axis as well as the issuance of interim licenses to two distribution and one generation power companies following the full takeover of the electricity market by ASERA.
