Japan puts grants to Nigeria at N723b

OkonjoNIGERIA has reportedly received aid worth N723 billion from Japan since independence in 1960.

The figure was made public yesterday in Abuja by the country’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Ryuichi Shoji.

He also said his home government had spent over N1billion on 120 projects from 1998 till date under its Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security programmes in Nigeria.

At the award of a $90,255 (N143 million) contract for water supply and sanitation in Abuja Municipal Council to African Women Agribusiness Network, Shoji said the project symbolises the friendship between Nigeria and his country.

He disclosed that although Japanese total aid to Nigeria since independence had risen to N723 billion, Mr. Shoji noted that his country’s efforts could only be compared to a drop in the bucket, given the high number of Nigerians that still lack potable water.

The envoy observed that although the need for clean and potable water could not be met at once, the new project would make the essential commodity available to the beneficiaries.

Shoji said: “But at the same time, this project is significant because it is a step in the right direction; people are not numbers but each person has a face and his or her life.

“The project will address the needs of thousands of people, alleviating their daily workload by giving them access to fresh water, thus, creating favourable conditions for their empowerment.”

The envoy hoped that Japanese government and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Nigeria, which are the implementing partners, would deliver on the project and positively impact on the wellbeing of the people.

The National President of African Women Agribusiness Network, Mrs. Yasmin Othman, said the organisation was borne out of the conviction that water and sanitation are important issues for women.

“In most developing countries, including Nigeria, the responsibility for domestic water supply lies almost entirely on women.”

Meanwhile, vulnerable young people will soon benefit from Ignition Nigeria Transformational Coaching School, a project designed to change their lives by an international organisation, Youth At Risk.

The pilot scheme is expected to take off in May in Lagos, Osun and Oyo with 300 participants in a series of three to four-day residential coaching school and workshops. This will be followed by a nine-month coaching programme.

The programme, which involves the three tiers of government, the private sector and the civil society, draws participants from local communities.

At a meeting convened in Lagos in partnership with Freedom Foundation, the participating states’ representatives and other stakeholders, Neil Wragg, the Chief Executive Officer of the Youth At Risk, said the programme came to the country based on his interaction with some Nigerians in England.

He added that after a series of research, he discovered that what they were doing in United Kingdom (UK) could be replicated in Nigeria.

Former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Sarah Sosan, who was also at the meeting, was optimistic that the programme would achieve its objectives.