DUTSINMA (KATSINA STATE) - The Federal Government requires N52 billion to settle debts it inherited on water projects, according to Dr Sayyadi Ruma, the Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources.
He told newsmen in Katsina that if government was to fully settle the liabilities, it would have to suspend the execution of new water projects for sometime.
Ruma said government would embark on the construction of new water projects, to meet the MDG target.
The Federal Government, he added, would henceforth, execute water projects on the basis of a cost-sharing formula with the state governments.
Ruma said the Federal Government would not abandon any water project it inherited, because of their tremendous benefits.
He said the Dutsinma water project, one of the inherited projects, had the capacity to irrigate 12,000 hectares of farmland.
The minister said the project, when completed, would provide more than 70 million litres of water daily, to various communities in the state.
He, however, expressed displeasure that water from the dam had not been utilised
for either irrigation or other purposes in the last 25 years.
Ruma said under the first phase of the Dutsinma project, the cost was shared equally between the Federal and Katsina State Governments.
He said under the second phase, which would cost N6.8 billion, the state government would bear 70 per cent of the cost, while the Federal Government would contribute 30 per cent.
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