By Emeka Samuel
About 89 Communities in Akwa Ibom have so far benefitted from micro projects worth N686.90,million executed by the Community and Social Development Projects (CSDP).
The projects numbering over 171 covering between 2015 and 2018 and executed in 11 local governments are financed by the State and Federal Governments in partnership with the World Bank.
General Manager of the state Community Development Agency, Mr. Ishmael Akpan, disclosed this during advocacy and awareness creation meeting with the Correspondents Chapel of Nigeria Union of Journalists in Uyo yesterday.
Akpan said that the State Government was committed to making life better for people of the rural communities, by touching the lives of the poor and vulnerable through micro-projects facilitated by the Community and Social Development Agency.
The General Manager said that the World Bank granted permission for the agency to intervene in 11 of the poorest local councils in the state.
“So far, 89 Communities are benefitting from the Community and Social Development Projects with a total of 268 being envisaged.
” 171 Micro Projects have been completed composed of 13 health centers, 12 school blocks, 30 (24 sets each) open market stalls, 39 motorized boreholes.
“24 electricity extension, five culverts/drainage, two VIP toilets, 45 town hall/civic centers and one viewing centre,” Akpan said.
He explained that apart from the 171 projects completed, 56 micro-projects were ongoing and in their various stages of completion adding that the projects have reduced poverty and enhanced the standard of living of the rural people in the benefiting communities.
The agency boss added that the community and social development project, which is an Akwa Ibom Government project in collaboration with the Federal government and the World Bank, aims at increasing access of the poor to social and natural infrastructure services.
According to him, the agency adopted the community development driven approach in its implementation process, in which the community decides on the projects to undertake while the agency facilitates funding, training, and technical know-how.
He said that the programme was an inclusive project that involved everyone in the various communities which make for transparency and accountability and urged the communities to see the projects as theirs; maintain and protect them.
He said that the State Government would continue to collaborate with other donor agencies to attract projects to more communities in the state.
