In the communities of Muregi and Ketso in Niger State, North-Central Nigeria, the Hydroelectric Power Producing Area Development Commission (HYPADEC) plans to build a 160 unit housing resettlement scheme.
According to the report, the Housing Resettlement Scheme will include all six HYPPADEC states and be paid for by the commission.
Floods and other natural disasters have periodically forced the communities of Muregi and Ketso to relocate,
When laying the foundation for the housing units, the state’s governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, remarked that the shelter will give the people the necessary safety once it is finished.
The Governor said the resettlement project is long overdue and expressed hope that it will be completed within the contractual agreement after recounting the impact of the Rivers Kaduna and Niger on several communities.
The Governor added that HYPPADEC and the Niger state government would collaborate to build basic infrastructure, such as roads.
“Electricity supply to Muregi will soon be finished; I’m advising the populace to safeguard government facilities in their neighborhoods for their ongoing and long-term benefits.”
A committee will be formed to ensure proper resettlement of the population as soon as the project is finished, the governor announced while praising HYPPADEC’s leadership for all its efforts to alleviate suffering in the riverine communities.
Out of the 160 units, 120 will be distributed to the Muregi people and 40 to the Ketso people, according to HYPPADEC’s Managing Director, Abubakar Sadiq Yelwa.
Read Also: Aisha Buhari: Tinubu won’t betray Nigerians, his victory is God’s will
“We conducted a needs analysis and professional survey, and we chose the two communities because they have experienced flooding since 2015 quite frequently.
“To allow for future expansions, each housing unit will take up half of the plot size allotted to it during construction, which is expected to cost about N500 million.
Under the close supervision of the Commission’s Directorate of Engineering and Technical Services, the entire project must be built with environmentally friendly and efficient materials.
Before the current administration ends, the first phase will be finished and put into service, according to the managing director of the Hydroelectric Power Producing Area Development Commission.
Both the Etsu Nupe and Chairman of the Niger State Council of Traditional Rulers, Alhaji (Dr) Yahaya Abubakar, and the Chairman of the Mokwa local government area, Jibrin Abdullahi Muregi, praised HYPPADEC’s 2002-starting intervention on behalf of the communities.
In a statement, Mary Noel Berje, the governor of Niger state’s spokeswoman, noted that the two communities’ residents had previously endured untold hardship because of the recurring flooding and ecological disaster that struck the areas every year.
Read Also: Elections on March 11: Adhere to the Constitution and the Electoral Act, Senate tells INEC
She further stated that prior attempts at resettling the population had failed.
“Hoped that HYPPADEC, a commission with a mandate to resettle flooding communities among other activities, would achieve that before the peak of this year’s rains,” one person wrote.
