THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has expressed satisfaction with the level of progress achieved in terms of work and utilisation of funds advanced to beneficiaries of its Real Sector Support Facility-Discretionary Cash Reserve Ratio (RSSF- DCRR) projects in Lagos, assuring them of more funding.
The Director of Development Finance, CBN, Mr Philip Yila Yusuf, in the company of other Directors and top executives of the bank, made this known in Lagos during a two-day on-site monitoring exercise of some projects funded under RSSF-DCRR intervention.
The CBN’s Director said, “I am here with some of my colleagues to do some project monitoring and evaluation. It is one thing to disburse funds through the Bank to the various sectors of the economy, but most importantly, we do monitor and evaluate how those funds are utilised.”
The team on Thursday May 26, 2022 visited Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC), Eko Electricity Distribution Company, Lagos Red Line Rail Project and Lagos Blue Line Rail Project.
On Friday, May 27, 2022, the team, including Director of Risk Management, the Director of Strategic Project Monitoring and Evaluation exercise of the CBN, also visited selected project sites at the Lagos Free Trade Zone, Epe-Lekki, Lagos.
They are; Candel Company Limited, manufacturers of high quality crop protection and crop enhancement products; Pinnacle Oil & Gas; Sana Group, a building materials fabrication company and Tolarams Group.
Meanwhile, Yusuf assured Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) that CBN would provide more funding for the Phase One of its metering project.
“Let me say that Ikeja Electricity is very innovative; we have followed some of the things you have done, especially providing electricity for upwards of 20 hours with different prices, among others.
“I look at all the performance numbers, month-by-month and you have done excellently well, to be honest compared to the others. We will continue to task you as you go to Phase One from the Phase Zero metering.
“We look forward to providing the requisite funding for that intervention. We believe it will go a long way in ensuring that the market is not only liquid but electricity gets to consumers,” he said.
Yusuf promised that the apex bank would craft interventions that would sort out some of the challenges with the energy sector.
He noted that the Bank, as part of its development finance effort, disbursed N8.83 trillion to different sectors, adding that 24 per cent of the funds went to the energy sector.
Similarly, Yusuf said, “We are impressed with what we have seen here with the Lagos State government Red Line project.
“We have disbursed most of the funds and from the briefings we have gotten, by the first quarter of 2023 this line will be running.
“Most of the work is already done; quite impressive. It is a signature project and I look forward to riding on the line come Q1 2023.”
He added that Lagos is the economic hub of the country and once one can move people around in an efficient manner, there would be more growth.
Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer of Ikeja Disco, Mrs Folake Soetan, urged the CBN team to fast track more intervention for the company.
“The projects that we have executed so far were for 2021 and we are already in Q2, 2022. So, in order to effectively execute the projects that we planned for 2022, we once again require your support as we have always done.
“For the National Mass Metering Initiative, Phase Zero, for Ikeja Electric, we executed on time. We completed the number of metering that was required of us and we are very eager to start Phase One.
“So, I am appealing once again for your support in helping us fast track that process. Opex (Operational Expenditure) is very key at this time,” Soetan said.
Also, giving technical details of the Red Line, the Managing Director, Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, Mrs Abimbola Akinajo, said, “This is one of the eight stations that LAMATA is building on the Redline and for now. We are well advanced, we are expecting all infrastructure to be completed by the end of the year.
“That programme is set in stone and we don’t have a challenge at meeting that deadline. In terms of operation, we are expected to start testing the line by the end of the year but by the first quarter of 2023, we will have operations starting as promised by the Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu.”
To reduce human impact on the tracks, she said one million metres flyover, made up of 700 metres from the track alignment and another 300 metres into the Ikeja inner road, is being constructed to take traffic from the Simbiat Abiola Way right over the tracks to land at Ikeja Along.
Akinajo disclosed that while the Red Line is going to run on Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU), the Blue Line would run exclusively on Electric Multiple Unit (EMU).
She said the government would be establishing a stabling yard at Oyingbo and Agbado, to cater for issues of fueling, maintenance and repairs of the rolling stock.
In the same way, the founder and Chairman, Candel Company Limited Mr Charles Anudu, said Candel has 34 outlets and this shows that the CBN Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) is not only for farmers but the entire agricultural value chain.
According to him, the CBN support “has helped our company in terms of expansion of product offering and quantity. Candle has already diversified its operations into seed production and marketing, thus fortifying its position in the crop value chain.”
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