The United Nations Habitat (UN-Habitat) has urged communities in Ekiti State to be hopeful that the sustainable urban development project the government of Ekiti State is seeking assistance for will create a brighter, more vibrant and eco-friendly urban landscape in the state.
This assurance was given by the Head of the United Nations Habitat Team, Mr. Remy Sietchiping, who led a team to Ekiti on a scoping mission, following a similar visit by a team from Ekiti State to Kenya recently.
During the Kenya visit, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by the Ekiti State government and the UN-Habitat.
The state government had sought collaboration and partnership, especially in the area of provision of adequate funds to help prosecute the major projects in the state.
Dr Remy Sietchiping, who addressed newsmen at the end of the three-day scoping mission to Ekiti State which started on Sunday, said officials of the Ekiti State government should be hopeful for the organisation’s interventions for better support and advance the journey.
Sietchiping, who spoke on “Assessment of Intervention Areas for Sustainable Urban Development”, commended ministries, departments and agencies of Ekiti State for what he said was their “tireless efforts and dedication in preparing the scoping mission in their state, but urged them “to continue to demonstrate their exceptional teamwork, professional competence.”
According to Sietchiping, the likely areas the UN-Habitat will focus on include waste, investment, data collection and management, housing, urban renewal, infrastructural development, environmental sustainability, social inclusion, mapping for planning purposes as well as identifying and keeping the State government’s priorities and interventions needed.
He said: “We understand from the Ekiti State government that they are action-oriented. Data is an area we are already considering and looking into as a means for evidence-based decision-making.
We are taking them seriously and we hope that further engagement and enlightenment will help us prioritise which interventions will be more impactful.
“I felt that the governor is quite interested in the area of taking decisions or interventions that will touch the heart and mind of the people and improve their quality of life. Also, we have gotten assurances that the focus will not only be in Ado Ekiti but extended to all the parts of the state.”
The Focal Person of the event who doubles as the Special Adviser on Housing and Mortgage Development to the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Gboyega Oloniyo, said the target of Governor Biodun Oyebanji was to focus on sustainable urban development and improving the quality of lives in Ekiti communities.
Oloniyo pointed out that the target set by Governor Oyebanji’s government in the state on the Scoping Mission was to take advantage of the opportunities before the state through the visit of the UN-Habitat team, with the aim of achieving sustainable urbanisation for the state.
He said the scoping mission to the state will provide a unique platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and collaboration among experts, policymakers and stakeholders with expertise and experiences from across the globe.
Mr Akintobi Olusanmi, the Special Adviser / DG, Bureau of Land / Geographical Information System, GIS, to the Governor of Ekiti State, while giving his address at the three days event, explained that Scoping is about creating cities that are not only functional but also livable.
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