Plateau Secures  $50m French Grant to Expand Water Project

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos

The Plateau State Government has received $50 million- grants from the French Development Agency (AFD) to expand water project in the state.

The Managing Director, Plateau State Water Board, Mrs Stella Buge revealed the figure while receiving a French delegation who were in the state yesterday to inspect water plants in Jos.

Buge said with the fund, the corporation would extend more kilometres of water pipes to areas in the state that hitherto lacked water supply, thereby tackling the perennial challenges of water scarcity in the state.

She said: “Today the AFD is here on a supervision mission of this project for the rehabilitation of infrastructure and extension of the distribution network. This project is to ensure improvement of water quality and supply to the people of Plateau.

“The team of engineers have gone round and inspected the two water plants to be rehabilitated; the Yakubu Gowon dam and the Lamingo Dam.”

Buge said the Yakubu Gowon dam phase one and two which were constructed in 1981 and 2001 respectively, with production capacity of 90 million gallons per day, would be rehabilitated and upgraded to increase water supply in the metropolis.

She added that the Lamingo Water Treatment plant, which was commissioned in 1972 with a four million gallon capacity a day, would also be upgraded.

The managing director commended the state government for the intervention in the water sector, particularly the Plateau State Urban Water Supply Project, which was being supported by AFD.

The French engineers after the inspection said that the dams would undergo the replacement of low and high lift pumps and motors, as well as chemical pumps and motors.

She said the filter valves, phase two lamella package, and 2MVA Phase 2 transformer would equally be replaced with evacuation of sedimentation tanks.