The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Ogun Osun River Basin Development Authority, Dr Adedeji Ashiru, disclosed on Wednesday that the Federal Government has finalised plans to construct seven dams across the six southwestern states of the federation for irrigation purposes and to enhance food production.
Ashiru also revealed that plans are ongoing to concession the hydropower-generating component of the Oyan Dam to boost the country’s power supply.
He said that the dam, which was installed with three turbines at its construction in 1979, is capable of generating nine megawatts of electricity.
Ashiru disclosed this while speaking on “Developing Strategies for Management of Ecological Challenges” at the 46th Annual Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria, held in Lagos.
The AGM and annual conference’s theme was “Sustainable Development: Building Resilient Cities.”
Ashiru stressed that dams play a major role in addressing ecological problems such as flooding, as they help control large surges of water that would otherwise escape downstream and cause havoc.
He stated that, had it not been for the foresight that led to the construction of the Oyan Dam in 1979, some parts of Abeokuta and the entire Isheri area, among other communities, would have been submerged by floodwater by now.
In line with President Bola Tinubu’s agenda to boost food production and control flooding, the Federal Government has concluded plans to build seven dams for irrigation purposes and enhance food production in the Southwest.
Ashiru explained, “We are building seven dams in the Southwest, and the contracts should be awarded between now and Friday. These dams are primarily for irrigation purposes, in line with President Bola Tinubu’s agriculture agenda to enable all-year-round farming and boost food production.
“Each location of these dams will have 12 greenhouses and open fields for farming. We will also have storage houses to store the farm produce.”
He added that there are ongoing discussions about concessioning the dam for power generation, with talks currently taking place with investors, and hoped to complete the concession plans by next year.
Ashiru also mentioned that although the Oyan Dam, commissioned in 1979 with three turbines for generating nine megawatts of power, only operated for one hour after its commissioning, serious efforts are now underway to maximise its potential.
He urged the consulting engineers to always apply their expertise to construct buildings capable of coping with flooding and other effects of climate change.
PUNCH
