Akwa Ibom State Agency for Community and Social Development said it has funded the execution of live touching micro projects in not fewer than 151 communities in the state.
The General Manager of the Agency in the state, Mr. Ishmael Akpan who disclosed this over the weekend during the 2019 International Day for community Development Celebration held in Uyo, the state capital said the agency was able to achieve that through the empowerment of Akwa Ibom state government.
Akpan however listed some of the executed projects to include: construction of health centres, motorized boreholes, classroom blocks, market stalls, civic centres, mini bridge/culvert, electrification and public toilets among others.
According to him, “CSDP has sustainably increase access of the poor to social and natural resource infrastructural services. CSDP adopts Community Driven Development (CDD) approach in which the community people have absolute control over their decision making in the identification of their felt-needs, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of their micro-projects.
“This has been a key success factor in the ownership and sustainability of completed micro-projects which provide services to people.”
He therefore commended the World Bank for partnering the state under CSDP which in turn has positively touched the lives of Akwa Ibom people and prayed that the theme of this year’s celebration tagged, ‘Community development:A better tool for sustainable livelihood,’ would be fully achieved.
In her welcome address, the Special Adviser, Bureau of Rural Development and Cooperatives, Mrs. Ekemini Umoh commended Gov. Udom Emmanuel for making Akwa Ibom state, a one community state through his inter-community road construction and industrialization drive.
Umoh noted that some people in some communities were notorious of vandalising and theft of government projects especially the removal of some vital electrical components in the communities.
The SA who described such practice as ‘anti-community development’urged perpetrators to desist in the spirit of the 2019 celebration saying that vandalism frustrates the efforts of the state government in bringing social amenities to the communities.
Umoh announced Gov. Emmanuel’s approval on linking more communities to the National Grid and tasked the communities on ensuring that projects and utilities sited in their areas by government are protected.
Umoh further announced that the state government has approved a 100 hectare Cooperative Agro-Park Initiative for communities to ensure food sufficiency.
Her words, “Gov. Emmanuel has succeeded in making Akwa Ibom state, a one community state through his inter-community road construction. Also Many of our communities host some industrial projects and we urge our people to protect such projects.
“It is regrettable that there exist some communities in the state that are fond of vandalising government projects, especially removal of vital electrical components from transformers.
“This practice, i must remark, is anti-community development and as such must be stopped in the spirit of this celebration.”
The guest lecturer, Prof. Nse Essien in his keynote addresse said available community development officers should be adequately trained to be able to adapt to challenges of current global changes in the environment.
He also called for multi stakeholder collaboration, involving government agents, individuals, Non-governmental organisations and community based organisations for optimum results in community development
