The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Environment has officially handed over some intervention projects on Community Based Solid Waste Management, to the Kogi State Government.
The Minister for Environment, Dr. Muhammad Mahmoud Abubarkar, disclosed this to newsmen after he led a team from the federal and state ministry of environment to inspect the intervention projects on Thursday in Lokoja.
Abubakar, who was represented by the Director Environmental Health and Pollution Control of the ministry, Dr. Ikeah Charles, said the intervention project which has different components, was designed to assist the States to deal with solid waste by adopting the community based approach in line with federal government local content policy.
He noted that the project started in 2017 and Kogi State was the second state to benefit from the intervention projects after Nassarawa State.
He advised the State Government to involve the engagement of Private Public Partnership in the management of the projects for sustainability.
He added that the beneficial communities were expected to take full ownership of the projects for proper maintenance.
The projects include: construction of plastic recycling plant at Apamueba community in Lokoja LGA, public toilets with overhead tank and borehole at Kabawa community, provision of 240 liters of waste bins, skip loaders, continuous evacuation of components waste among others were the various areas of intervention by the federal government.
The minister and his team visited the governor after the inspection, and were received by his Chief of Staff, Mr Abdulkareem Jamiu Asuku, who appreciated the federal government for the gesture and promised that the state would make good use of the intervention projects.
In his remarks, the State Commissioner for Environment, Hon. Victor Adewale Omofaiye, commended the federal government for the choice of Kogi as the second State to benefit from the projects.
The Commissioner assured that the state would make judicious use of the projects for the benefit of the people of the state, adding that the state would consider the advice of the federal government on the private public partnership.
He noted that some staff of the ministry have been trained by the federal government to handle the plastic recycling plant for effective management.
