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The Oyo State government through office of Sustainable Development Goals, SDG has partnered with Association of Waterwell Drilling Rig Owners and Practitioners, (AWDROP) to rehabilitate non-fnctional or malfunctioning boreholes across the state.
The project is tagged Project ABIOLA, an acronym that stands for’All Boreholes In Oyo Live Again’.
AWDROP President, Engr. Michael Ale, who spoke to journalists on Monday, described the project as a brilliant initiative that will promote sustainable development in provision of potable water for inhabitants in the state.
According to him, the Project Abiola is borne out of the association’s program, National Borehole Rejuvenation and Rehabilitation Program (NABORE) which incidentally is in line with the Partnership for Expanded Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (PEWASH) programmeof the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.
He said: “Project ABIOLA is an acronym, ‘All Boreholes In Oyo Live Again’, derived from an initiative between Office of Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs Oyo State Chapter and Association of Waterwell Drilling Rig Owners and Practitioners, AWDROP.
“The initiative is meant to address many issues and vices that have to do with borehole abandonment in Oyo State. A lot of investments had gone into these abandoned boreholes in the state like designing, fixture and management of boreholes. As soon as some of them are commissioned, they develop faults due to lack of maintenance and proper management.
“And to government-dug boreholes, people believe that they are less concerned and therefore leave these facilities uncatered for. This project thus allows partnership between the state government and private individuals to enhance its sustainability to further avoid situation where thieves and vandals destroy, cart away and make the facilities go moribund.
“Because a lot of money has been sunk into these moribund project, our association at the national level decided to partner with SDG’s office of Oyo State Government to bring the boreholes back to life and to inculcate habit of maintenance in the beneficiaries. This is to make them know that the project is neither for the state government nor office of the SDG but for them as beneficiaries.
“These boreholes will be in public places like markets, churches, motor parks and other public places. The head of these communities where these facilities are provided will be in charge of these facilities. The community heads will also help in areas of finding suitable locations to provide these facilities and their executions.
“We are also putting sustainable measures by commercializing the facilities through collection of stipends from the consumers. This will be done by attaching toilet facilities. When you are using toilets with water facilities, whoever managing that, will be earning income and therefore creating job for the person and invariably, the facilities will be maintained. Also, we have our numbers on the billboards, in case there are problems. We can be contacted and we will be there to fix the problems. That is why we are partnering with the state government.
“Above all, the project is meant to create employment through these infrastructural facilities, some of them worth N10million and others two or three million.
“With these strategies in place, it is clear that the project’s name, ABIOLA is not by sentiment but by coincidence and the coincidence is for good purpose”.