World Bank - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Philip Daniel Yatai
Nov, Fri, 2024

Health

16 LGAs benefit from World Bank’s nutrition project in Katsina

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By Diana Omueza

The African Youth Growth Foundation (AYGF) says three million persons in 16 Local Government Areas in Katsina State have benefitted from the World Bank Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) project.

Dr Arome Salifu, Executive Director of AYGF, said this at the Katsina ANRIN stakeholders engagement and project close out ceremony in Abuja.

Salifu said that the foundation was the implementing partner of the World Bank-funded tripartite project that has impacted no fewer than three million Katsina indigenes and residents.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the project is between the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Health, and the Katsina State Government through the State Ministry of Health.

“The AYGF implemented the ANRIN project across 16 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Katsina, where we were able to deploy essential nutritional services across the LGAs

“The project targeted children under five years of age, lactating and nursing mothers as well as expectant mothers.

“Cumulatively, we were able to deliver the services to well over 1.7 million beneficiaries in 16 LGAs and over 4.5 million services within one and a half year,” he said.

Salifu said that the medical packages distributed included folic acid, vitamin A, albendazole, and micronutrient powder.

He said that counselling services were also provided to the critical targets in the state

He commended Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, the state’s ministry of health, the commissioner, the project implementation unit and other stakeholders for the success of the project.

Mr Musa Adamu, Katsina State Commissioner of Health, lauded the impact of the project in addressing the socio-economic aspect of the lives of Katsina people.

According to Adamu, with the effect of global warming, environmental degradation, and climate change on communities, this kind of stakeholders’ engagement is needed to proffer proactive measures.

He said that the state government remained committed to building a secured future for the people.

“The most important aspect of the government is people. This project concentrated on building the next generation because we need to have a very healthy generation coming on board,” he said.

Dr Umar Bello, the Project Coordinator, said that the project targeted prevention of malnutrition among children under five, pregnant women and lactating mothers. (NAN)

Edited by Kadiri Abdulrahman

Tosin Kolade
Nov, Tue, 2024

Agriculture , Food Security

Water, Power ministries sign MOU on $500m irrigation, hydropower project

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By Tosin Kolade

The Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, and the Ministry of Power, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the implementation of the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria (SPIN) project.

The 500 million dollars World Bank SPIN project aims to enhance dam safety and improve water resource management for hydropower and irrigation across 25 states.

At the signing ceremony in Abuja on Tuesday, the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said that the joint effort reflects the synergy required to implement transformational projects.

Utsev stated that the ministry’s mandate includes boosting food production, creating jobs for women and youth, and strengthening Nigeria’s economy.

“Today’s occasion marks another step towards achieving these goals and repositioning the country,” he stated.

He said that the initiative, approved by President BolaTinubu, reflected the administration’s commitment to inter-ministerial collaboration for delivering democratic dividends to Nigerians.

Utsev also acknowledged the ongoing support of the World Bank, describing it as a trusted partner in Nigeria’s development journey.

He cited initiatives like the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) project, concluding in January 2025, as foundations for innovative solutions in water and agriculture.

“We are confident that the SPIN project will build on this legacy by boosting food production and meeting the irrigation needs of our growing population,” he added.

As Chairman of the SPIN Preparatory Team, Utsev assured stakeholders of the ministries’ and partners’ full commitment to the successful implementation of the project.

“Our collective efforts have brought us to this significant moment, and I am confident that SPIN will deliver the tangible benefits Nigerians are eagerly anticipating,” he said.

Earlier, the Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, noted the importance of the partnership in achieving sustainable hydropower development and enhancing energy security across Nigeria.

He noted that while Nigeria is rich in water resources across its river basins, only about 2 per cent of the country’s estimated 14 gigawatts of hydropower potential has been harnessed.

“The signing of this MOU is a key step in ensuring Nigeria’s energy future is powered by clean, renewable sources, in line with the Nigeria Energy Transition Plan.

“We aim to optimise our natural resources, diversify our energy mix, and tackle climate change,” Adelabu said.

He emphasised that fully exploiting this potential could transform Nigeria’s energy landscape and providing sustainable power for millions.

He said under Tinubu’s leadership, the administration has committed to addressing energy challenges by prioritising energy’s vital role in economic growth and job creation.

“As part of the Renewed Hope Agenda, the government has introduced several legislative and policy measures, including the Electricity Act 2023, which decentralises the electricity market and allows subnational governments to participate.”

Adelabu also stressed the role of distributed energy systems in enhancing reliability.

“Decentralised power generation enables local governments and private investors to develop embedded energy systems, reducing risks to national grid infrastructure.

“This, alongside our renewable energy potential, especially in solar and hydropower, forms the foundation of our sustainable energy strategy.”

He pointed out that Nigeria’s northern states, with 8 to 12 hours of sunshine daily, offer opportunities for solar power, while hydropower remains key to the energy mix.

Adelabu reaffirmed that harnessing hydropower potential and fostering partnerships would ensure a reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy future for Nigeria.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 25 states have shown interest in SPIN project; Benue, Katsina, Akwa Ibom, Niger, Gombe, Sokoto, Enugu, Bauchi, Cross River, and Nasarawa.

Others are Ekiti, Kebbi, Plateau, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Abia, Kwara, Imo, Taraba, Kano, Delta, Osun, Jigawa, Edo, and Kogi. (NAN) www.nannews.ng

Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz

Rabi'u Sani Ali
Nov, Fri, 2024

General News

Youths: FG, World Bank to provide 10m jobs in 5 yrs – Official

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By Franca Ofili

The Federal Government says it will collaborate with the World Bank, to provide decent jobs directly or indirectly to 10 million youths within the next five years.

Mr Ayodele Olawande, Minister of Youth Development, said this when he hosted the World Bank team led by Mr Maheshwor Shrestha, World Bank Economist, on Thursday in Abuja.

Olawande said that forum would enable him to update the team on the various activities and engagements of the ministry in the past months.

“The focus of the ministry has been to achieve the establishment of a strong coordinated mechanism for all youth intervention focused on economic inclusion and we want data to inform all we do.

”Provide decent jobs directly or indirectly for at least, 10 million youths within the next five years and ensure that every youth is proficient in at least, two income generating skills.

“Expand our credit support funds by 50 million dollars to reach more young people, including businesses led by going women, people with disabilities and young people in rural areas.’’

The minister said the current reality showed that 60 million youths were in the labour bracket, and an additional 5.5 million would join the labour market every year.

He said that almost 58 per cent of Nigeria’s informal workforce was young people.

“Despite these data, we see these opportunities for the development of the country if harnessed effectively,” he said.

Olawande said the challenges hinged on deficient skills for job market, relevant vocational training and lack of access to capital and funds safety with infrastructural deficit.

In his speech, Shrestha said that no fewer than 60 million youths in Nigeria were underage at the moment.

According to him, it means that Nigeria needs to create enough opportunities for a huge pool of youths that are already there and that will be joining the way.

He said that every year, 5 and a half million would reach paid working age.

Shrestha said that only seven per cent of the youths were engaged in paid jobs.

“And even those are not permanent jobs; there are still informal jobs. So, if we look at overall, 93 per cent of the youths are working in an informal sector.’’

According to him, the bank is figuring out how to improve safety net support towards such people, adding that, “what we are doing now is to think about how the framework applies at the state level.

“So, I think we are starting to work with the Governors’ Board of Secretaries to see how this approach applies at the state levels,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo

Tosin Kolade
Nov, Thu, 2024

General News

World Bank promises more support to education in Katsina

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By Abbas Bamalli

World Bank has promised to continue to provide necessary support to the Katsina State Government toward the development of the education sector.

The World Bank Country Director, Dr Ndiame Diop, made the promise in Katsina on Thursday at the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) project Implementation Support Mission (ISM) meeting.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was organised by the state’s Ministry of Basic and Secondary School Education, in collaboration with the AGILE office in Katsina.

The project has been supporting the education sector in the state through the construction, rehabilitation of schools, provision of potable water in schools, conditional cash transfer, among others.

The country director, however, said “We are here to learn not just about the project and how we are modestly supporting you, but also to learn about Katsina itself.

“So, I would like to really commend the ministry and the leadership for the commitment to education.

“I’m very pleased to see the progress that you have already made so far. I was just looking at the numbers in 2021 when the project started, the completion rate at the senior secondary education level was only 21 per cent.

“This was very low, and I think by today, the number has gone up quite significantly, but we’re still not there yet.

“But I think the objective should be to really go even further. But I would like to commend you for the commitment”.

Diop added that the global research in Nigeria and elsewhere, shows that each additional year of education at secondary level increases the lifetime earning of the beneficiaries significantly.

He stressed that “if we want to reduce poverty in the future, we cannot skip education, we have to put a lot of efforts and emphasis on the sector.

“As you know better than me, education is a sector that’s complex, with many stakeholders involved and many factors affecting the result, that’s why leadership and commitment at the top is critical”.

He pointed out that basically, officials cannot make significant progress in education without strong commitment and leadership, commending the state government and other stakeholders’ commitment.

“I also want to reiterate the commitment of the World Bank to continue supporting this sector to achieve the results that you have sets for yourselves,” the country director assured.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Education, Hajiya Zainab Musawa, said huge successes were recorded in the sector, “due to the political will of Gov. Dikko Radda.

“I would like to assure you that anything education, comes from the bottom of his heart. He takes it so personal that nothing slips under the carpet without his knowledge or decision.

“The ministry is the highest level of decision making in terms of education. We have about five agencies, 13 departments that are very key and institutional to education in the state.

“I would like to say that AGILE has been able to give the girl-child the opportunity to know that she is special.”(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu