Bayelsa seals contract for provision of clean water for ten communities

Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Seriake Dickson has presented a draft of N200 million to Cardinal Resources for the provision of potable water in ten communities in the state.

Speaking at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, (MOU), in Government House, Governor Dickson expressed satisfaction with the effectiveness of the technology being utilized for the water project.

“We have great confidence that this partnership will result in the provision of affordable potable drinking water for our communities.

“We are not just talking of ten communities; this is just the first in the long interaction that we are going to have with you”

“I am very satisfied with the briefings I got about the reliability of the system that you have developed. If it works the way we anticipate and we trust that it will, then you have got a great a partnership with this state because this government is committed to the provision of water to our people wherever they live. We are committed to fulfilling our obligation as a government to provide basic social amenities in the areas of health, education and security for their well being.”

The Governor, who noted that his administration places high premium on the provision of social amenities, said before now government had not embarked on water projects in view of the peculiar challenges the state was facing in that sector, especially due to the high iron content and needed to use the appropriate technology that could address the problem.

 “The reason we did not dabble into a lot of water projects as so many others had done in the past is because we are aware of the peculiar challenges we have such as the high iron content”

He expressed hope that the partnership between his administration and the company would be strengthened for the mutual benefits of both parties towards addressing the age long problem of delivering potable and affordable water for Bayelsans.

The Governor described as ironical a situation whereby Bayelsa, a predominantly riverine area lacked clean drinking water, pointing out that successive administrations have had to grapple with the challenge of providing clean drinking water.

In his remarks, President of Cardinal Resources, Mr. Kevin Jones said his company adopted the international standards for clean drinking water.

Mr. Jones noted that the partnership would not only deliver potable water to communities but also provide training and generate job opportunities for local operators and technicians that would be handling the technology.