From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The 31st virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the National Quality Policy to stop rejection of Nigerian goods exported out of the country.
Minister of Industry Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, who briefed State House Correspondents at the end of the meeting, said the essence of the policy is to ensure goods exported out of Nigeria are accepted in the countries they are being exported to.
According to him, ‘For a long time, Nigerian exporters have been suffering because of the lack of quality of their goods. We felt that it was high time we actually have a policy which will create a situation whereby standard of the Nigerian goods that are exported would be raised, such that that rejection would stop.
‘This policy will create a situation whereby the government and the private sector will be able to collaborate to set up quality testing centres, testing labs which we hope will have accreditation with international centres, such that any good that has been approved to have met the standard, would be of international standard.’
Adebayo said the council also approved the Nigerian/Hungarian Trade Agreement. He said the agreement between the two countries has now been ratified. The whole essence is for Nigerian businessmen to have access to export their goods to Hungary and to further increase trade between the two countries.
The minister said the council also approved a N50 million variation of power contract in the Kano Free Trade Zone.
The memo, he said, was on behalf of the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority.
Adebayo explained that a contract was awarded in 2018 for underground cabling for power project within the Kano Free Trade Zone but unfortunately it was not completed before certain specification changes were made.
‘So the contractor requested a variation of a six per cent increase of the initial contract sum, which amounted to about N50 million. Council has approved that variation and the job which has reached 93 per cent completion will be completed within the next six months,’ he said.
Adebayo said the council also approved another contract for Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority, for the purchase of a property in Lagos to be used as their Lagos zonal office.
‘As you are aware, Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority is responsible for all the free trade zones in the country, the value of the free trade zones in the Lagos area alone is valued at about $30 billion. So for proper collation and oversight of these free trade zones, we felt that it is only right that we have the zonal office of the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority in the Lagos area and that has been approved by council.’
Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola, on his part, said the council approved the contract for the design and deployment of contract performance and compliance for highway and road management system at the sum of N203,845,332.50.
‘This is an information and communication technology device being procured by the ministry in order to improve its capacity to monitor not only contract performance but also maintenance of its roads and to empower not only its 36 controllers in each of the state of the federation but also, the six zonal directors to improve our service delivery,’ Fashola said.
‘The importance of deploying the ICT now perhaps would be better appreciated when it is understood that we have over 13,000 kilometres of road networks at different stages of construction or rehabilitation as at the close of December 2020. And those 13,000 plus kilometres are manifest in over 700 different contracts. I continue to explain that some of our roads are so long that we have five different contractors. Like the Kano-Maiduguri road, for example, we have five different contractors there, Benin to Lokoja, we have five different contractors there and so on and so forth. So we have different contracts to manage and so we are deploying ICT there. Upon full deployment, one of the things you will see is that citizens will be expected to become an army of reporters providing us with information so that we can respond more quickly. Because this will be a web-based reporting and monitoring system.’
The minister said the council also approved the ratification of the emergency roads repair done in Zamfara State in 2016 caused by heavy rainfall. He said the rain had washed out Gumi bridge, Dakitawa, Kebbi to Sokoto State border, and Gusau to Talata Mafara to Sokoto border.
‘Tthe contract was awarded under the public procurement act in emergency situations as provisional contracts. So we had to go through the procurement process, file reports of completion and then come to seek ratification. So, the work had since been completed but the paperwork has now led us here. And the ratification was granted today by FEC for N7,923,706,078.86,’ he said.
The Minister of State for Power, Goddy Jedi-Agba, said the council approved two months extension and the sum of N124.2 million for the variation of contract for the construction of sub-stations projects in Lanlate in Oyo State and Abeokuta in Ogun State.
‘The contract was awarded because of the typography of that area. The typography is tricky and so there is a need to upgrade and make the facilities usable and accessible by the people. So, if we have those two substations fixed, the transmission of power will be stepped up in that area and the whole of Ogun State and most of the South West will have improved power,’ he said.
The council was also notified of the progress in the metering Programme in the country.
‘You know the president has approved the metering Programme for the whole country. So the Yola DISCO wrote to notify us that they have commenced this process and have entered into an agreement with Meter Asset Provider (MAP). So this is ongoing and we assure you that the present directive regarding metering of the entire country will soon be completed and services will be improved,’ Jadi-Agba said.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the council approved the sum of N1.146,659,500 billion for the award of contract for the installation of solar street lighting for the Kershi-Jikwoyi dual carriage road in Abuja.
Mohammed who spoke on behalf of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello, said the construct was awarded to Messrs Bassman Nigeria Limited at the completion period of six months.
‘This is a 20-kilometre street lighting project and the area host some very strategic institutions such as the Treasury Academy, new Correctional Center which is under construction and it also houses the Federal Science College, the Armed Forces Post Service Housing Scheme in addition to Police Housing Scheme among others. Apart from beautifying the area, it also provides better security for the area. It means the SDG goal number 11 will be met and at the same time the global energy policy will be met,’ he said.
Before the commencement of the day’s proceedings, cabinet members observed a minute silence for former Ministers, Alhaji Dauda Birma, Alhaji Mohammadu Gambo Jimeta and Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim.
The late Birma, who served as Minister of Education from 1997 to 1998, died on January 5 aged 80.
Jimeta, who died on 21st January, at the aged of 83, was the Minister of Agriculture from 1995-1997 he was also the Inspector General of Police and National Security Adviser at various times.
While Abdullahi Ibrahim was the Minister of Education, Science and Technology as well as Transportation Aviation between 1984 and 1985 when President Buhari was the military Head of State.
Ibrahim, who was the first Northern Lawyer to attain the position of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, died on Sunday, January 24, at the age of 84.