By Gbenga Akingbule
The North East Development Commission (NEDC) has set November 2024 as the completion date for the Jere Bowl Road project, which links seven agrarian communities, including Koshebe, where Boko Haram terrorists killed dozens of residents in 2020.
Gatekeepers News reports that the 52-kilometer road, flagged off by Vice President Kashim Shettima last year, had witnessed some setbacks due to Boko Haram activities in the area.
However, NEDC officials believe the road will be ready for commissioning by November.
This was disclosed by the Managing Director of NEDC, Alhaji Mohammed Alkali, when members of the House of Representatives Committee on NEDC were conducted on an oversight visit.
According to Alkali, the Jere Bowl project is of immense importance to residents of affected communities, as it will improve food production and enhance security of lives and properties.
“Jere Bowl is one of the agricultural belts which, if properly harnessed, will create employment, food security, and others. The people here are very hardworking in terms of farming, and the kind of rice they produce here is of high quality. So, our intent is not only to do the road but also to encourage entrepreneurship and economic activities. We are working assiduously to ensure this road is completed before November this year.”
The NEDC boss added, “We are donating to the farmers and vulnerable in Jere and Mafa 1,000 water pumps, 400 cartons of herbicides, 200 spaghetti-making machines, and 200 grinding machines.”
The project manager, Engineer Mohammed Abba Sanda, who addressed the honorable members, stated that the total amount for the road construction stood at N13.55 billion. The benefiting communities include Ngwom, Koshebe, Galamari, and Gongulong-Zabarmari-Khadamari roads in Mafa and Jere Local Government Areas.
The NEDC MD also conducted the House Committee members on a visit to the Alau Dam, where the commission has committed N1.5 billion for the reconstruction of the collapsed spillway.
Other places visited include the completed maternity ward at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, executed by NEDC, and the ongoing construction of the NEDC State Office and Warehouse, where NEDC food and non-food items are kept.
The Chairman of the House Committee, Honorable Usman Zanna, commended the NEDC for the many projects executed and urged them to maintain the tempo.
“We are satisfied with what we have seen on the ground. NEDC leadership is doing a very good job,” Zanna said.
