ICPC kicks-off tracking of 1,500 projects worth N610 billion across across Nigeria
By Chizoba Njaka
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has kicked off the phase 7 of the Constituency and Executive Project Tracking Exercise.
The Acting Director, Public Enlightenment and Education and the Spokesperson for the Commission, Demola Bakare, who revealed this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja, said the exercise is an initiative of the commission that began in 2019.
Mr Bakare disclosed that it would help in focusing on how well money allocated to critical sectors of education, health, agriculture, water resources and power amongst others, are utilized by the governing bodies irrespectively.
According to him, the 7th phase, involving 1500 projects with a total project value of N610 billion, commenced recently in 22 states across the 6 geopolitical zones. Such states are: Kwara, Niger, Kogi, FCT, Kebbi, Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Borno, Lagos, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Cross River, Delta, Imo, Abia and Enugu State.
He as well explained that the exercise will cut across agencies of government including intervention agencies such as North-East Development Commission (NEDC), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Rural Electrification Agency (REA), National Primary Health Care Development Authority (NPHCDA), Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) and Ecological Fund Office.
The ICPC boss however stated that the exercise is to deepen adherence to due process in the execution of government projects, improve value for money, and entrench the culture of compliance with the scope and specification as contained in the contract documents.
Mr Bakare also exposed, "the ICPC tracked a total of 1,900 projects valued at N500 billion naira in phase 6 of the exercise across 24 states of the nation's 6 geopolitical zones expressing that the projects were tracked within the focal sectors of Education, Water Resources, Agriculture, Power, Health, Energy, and Roads.
However, "the projects in the 6th phase were awarded to a total of 1,355 contractors in 176 MDAs", he added.