The Federal Government shelled out over N2.4 billion on fifteen projects across nine states in 2023, yet not a single contractor has shown up to work.
This was documented by Tracka, BudgIT’s service delivery watchdog, in its latest report, Achieving National Development through Efficient Service Delivery, published on Thursday.
The report exposes how seventeen contractors walked away with government funds across multiple ministries and agencies, while project sites remained untouched.
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Mainstream Contractors, for example, was paid N401 million in December 2023 under the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to rehabilitate the Welcome-Nasarawa-Farewell Road in Nasarawa State. Tracka reported that a single brick had not been laid.
Icent Light Ltd received N153 million between August and November 2023 to fence, landscape and complete the Onicha-Uku Town Hall and Event Centre in Delta State. Tracka also reported that nothing had been done on the site.
Furthermore, A3 Interbiz Link pocketed N88 million in December 2023 under the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) to construct and equip a primary healthcare centre in Adedeji Community, Ikirun, Osun State. According to the Tracka report, no work has been done.
In total, Tracka monitored 1,404 projects valued at N282.5 billion across 25 states in the past year. The numbers have not been pretty. Only 720 projects — 51% — were actually completed.
Another 332 were still in progress and 129 projects, about 9%, were either outright abandoned or executed so poorly.
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Worse still, 223 projects, 16% of the total, never even got off the ground. In total, the report stated that N3.9 billion is linked to abandoned projects scattered across the country.
The report also graded key Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) based on their project implementation. Some performed well. Others were a complete disaster.
The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) led the pack with a 78% completion rate, followed by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture at 68% and the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency at 65%.
But at the bottom of the pile, the Lower Benue River Basin Development Authority turned in a disgraceful 20% completion rate, while the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs barely scraped 16%.
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