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Electricity: FG earmarks $3.7b for 20,000mw by 2016

By on September 7, 2013

Vice President, Namadi Sambo, on Thursday said the privatisation of the Bank of Agriculture (BoA) by the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) is to unbundle, and enable it provide cheaper funds for agriculture.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 19th Nigerian Economic Summit (NES) in Abuja, the Vice President, said the privatisation will also enable other investors participate in the agric bank.

Explaining different initiatives and efforts of government in the power sector, the Vice President said government is also investing in expansion and improvement in the nation’s power transmission, and that government has earmarked $3.7 billion to transmit 20,000 megawatts of electricity by 2016.

He said government is doing everything to ensure that the power master plan is faithfully implemented in order to have adequate power supply to drive the economy and achieve the Agricultural Transformation Agenda.

Sambo who commended the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) Scheme of the present administration, said it has helped to end four decades of corruption in the fertilizer sector, as farmers across the country now receive their fertilizers as well as improved seeds through their mobile phones.

He noted that so far over 3.5 million small holder farmers have received their fertilizers, seeds via the electronic wallet scheme  in 2013 cropping season, expressing optimism that the supply of fertilizer for farmers would improve significantly as more fertilizer companies take advantage of this success to set up new fertilizer plants.

As part of the measures to provide enabling environment and land security for investors, the Vice President further said the Presidential Commission on Land Reforms has reached an advanced stage and the Minister of National Planning had been directed to put them in the agenda for the next month’s National Economic Council meeting for their presentation and consideration of the Council.

The Vice President who  lauded  the successful conduct of the  Economic Summit, assured that inputs and recommendations would accelerate the pace of the transformation process and build the much needed public and private sector investment to Nigeria into a food self sufficient country and a global power house in food.

 

 

[Daily Independent]