FG Revives N61bn World Bank Katampe Development Project

FG Revives N61bn World Bank Katampe Development Project

 Seven years after the abandonment of Katampe infrastructure concessioned project among the Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA), the World Bank and a Consortium of Engineering Services, the federal government has given the project a new lease of life.

The project for the development of engineering infrastructure is estimated to cost N61 billion.

It was abandoned and only about 20 percent completed arising from underfunding.

The federal government has now  mobilised for more funding for the project under the  Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, said the success of the project would enable the replication of similar projects within the city.

He made the remark at the inauguration of the Inter-Ministerial Implementation Committee on the report of the Audit of the Structure and Financing of the PPP Project for the Development of Engineering Infrastructure at Katampe district, Phase 2, Abuja.

He lamented that poor packaging and implementation have undermined the  laudable project.

According to him, the past system of developing the city based on budgetary allocation was no longer sustainable because of financial constraints.

Babagana Zanna is the chairman of the committee. Its terms of reference include renegotiation of  the structure, scope and financing of the project to ensure compliance with the PPP principles, ensure accountability, fairness and value for money.

''Already we are already talking of phase five of the city, whereas, except for phase 1, there has been no significant development of infrastructure in phases 2, 3 and, indeed, phase 4,” Zanna said.

The acting Director-General Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC),  Chidi Izuwa, said the World Bank has identified the Katampe District Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) engineering infrastructure as a model project that can spread to the world.

Izuwa listed the project as the only option for meeting infrastructure deficit in the FCT given that only 11 of the 72 districts in the FCT have full infrastructure.

 He noted that FCT hosts one of the most successful PPP projects in Nigeria, as demonstrated by the Garki Hospital PPP initiative which is one of its kinds in the health sector.