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The Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umaru Radda, has awarded a contract for the Zobe Water Supply Phase One B project at the cost of N31 billion after years of struggle by successful administrations to complete the water scheme.
The 88,741 length water project, awarded to Mutual Commitment Company Limited (MCC), is expected to tackle the perennial water scarcity bedevilling communities across Dutsinma, Charanchi, Rimi, Katsina, and Batagarawa Local Government Areas in the state when completed.
Speaking at the ceremonial groundbreaking of the project in Kafin-Soli yesterday, Radda said it was awarded to the MCC at a cost of over N31 billion to boost water supply in the state.
He has directed the state’s Ministry of Water Resources to initiate the process of payment of 40 per cent of the total project sum to the company for its immediate commencement of the work.
He explained that the Zobe Water project phase one B would provide a potable water supply to Dutsinma, Katsina, Rimi, Batagarawa, Charanchi, Kafin-Soli, Tafashiya, and Radda.
Governor Radda said: “We are assembled here for the groundbreaking ceremony of the Zobe Water supply phase one B project, a venture that speaks not only to our technical prowess, but to our moral imperatives as a government, and to provide for the needs of our people.
“To construct the infrastructure that sustains life is to deliver those essential services without which the advancement of humanity cannot flourish. This undertaking had an estimated cost exceeding N31 billion.
“Entrusting it to Mutual Commitment Company Limited is not merely an engineering bid; it is a declaration of intent, a solemn pledge that every citizen of Katsana State, whether residing in the bustling towns or the most polluted hamlets, shall enjoy the unfiltered access to a clean, safe, and reliable water supply.”
He added that the water supply project would provide job opportunities to artisans, suppliers, adding that local enterprises will flourish in the state.
“Skills will be honoured, and livelihoods sustained. In this manner, the project will infuse vitality into our local economies,” he said.
He described the provision of water, sanitation, and hygiene as some of the cardinal pillars of his Building Your Future development agenda.
Earlier, the state Commissioner for Water Resources, Dr. Bashir Gambo Saulawa, said the water project underscores Governor Radda’s unwavering commitment to uplifting the lives of citizens and etching progress into the fabric of the state.
He noted that the Zobe phase one B water project “is a promise made tangible, a solemn commitment to deliver clean, safe, and reliable water to every corner of our city.
“Water, as we all know, is the essence of life, but beyond its physical necessity, its provision is a moral obligation, a reflection of our collective conscience,” the commissioner said.
In his remarks, the Group Managing Director of Mutual Commitment Company Limited, Mr. Liu Zhaolong, said the company would complete the project within 12 months instead of the initial two-year timeframe.
