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By Emmanuel Adeleke
Ahead of the auspicious inauguration of the Digital Industrial Park (DIP) project in Kano State, the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, has paid an inspection visit to the site of the ongoing construction of the project.
A statement issued by the commission’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka, on Sunday, said Danbatta got an unequivocal commitment from the contractors that the project will be completed by January 2023.
During the visit, the EVC, who was accompanied by the NCC’s Head of Projects, Philip Eretan, and his Chief of Staff, Malam Hafiz Shehu, among others, including the Special Adviser to Kano State Governor, Prof. Yusif Alhassan, stressed the need for the contractors to expedite efforts in completing the project on schedule.
Danbatta said that both the federal and the state governments are following the progress being made at the construction site with keen interest, owing to the value addition the project would make not only to the economy of the North West geopolitical zone but also to the country as a whole.
“This is a project that Nigerians are eagerly waiting to be completed. The federal government and the state government are following it with keen interest, and at NCC, our responsibility is to ensure that there’s no further delay in delivery as we have been doing everything possible to ensure that we have the project commissioned in the next few months.
“While I promise you that we will give you all the support you need, I also demand that progress report be sent to me fortnightly over the two months period in order to ensure effective monitoring by us at NCC,” he said.
Danbatta also commended the state governor for providing land at a prime location in Kano for the project, which he said is an indication of the value the government attaches to the project.
Friday’s inspection by the NCC boss was part of the routine visits to ensure close monitoring and effective supervision of important projects that will have great impacts on the country’s socio-economic development.
The DIPs currently being built across the six geopolitical zones of the country by the NCC are expected to provide Innovation Labs and Digital Fabrication Laboratories (Fablabs) for use by digital innovators and entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into products and prototypes. The parks are also designed to provide broadband services and to have access to constant power supply.
This is not the first time the NCC boss would pay a visit to the construction site of the project located at Audu Bako Secretariat in the ancient city, which doubles as the commercial nerve centre of northern Nigeria.
The EVC’s latest visit was sequel to a similar visit to the construction site in July 2022 and other visits he had made much earlier, essentially to assess the level of work that has been done so far to ensure that the project is delivered within the set deadline.
During the July 2022 visit to the construction site, Danbatta pointed out that the project was conceived to support the Federal Government’s digital drive by facilitating the availability and accessibility of digital services across the country, and promoting their adoption and usage across all sectors, as well as providing youth employment in the country.
Danbatta also said that no part of the country would be left out in benefitting from the initiative, stressing that the project is another move to boost youth digital skills acquisition, promote innovations, provide jobs for the teeming Nigerian youths and ultimately support the overall digital economy agenda of the Federal Government.
