8 Years Not Enough To Develop A Nation – AUDA-NEPAD

The African Union Development Agency -New Partnership For Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD) has said that eight is not enough to develop a nation, that sustainable development is a process that needs enough time to be actualized.

Chief executive officer of the AUDA – NEPAD, Princess Gloria Akobundu who disclosed while receiving a delegation of APC national integrity movement in Abuja, likened sustainable development to the growth of a child which passes through infancy, to adolescence to adulthood.

She explained that in the process of national development, AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria has embarked on a lot of community development projects that have revolutionized rural communities in Nigeria.

According to her, these projects have improved the standard of living of people in rural communities by providing access to basic Social Amenities.

“The Renewable Energy Project ‘Firewood to Gas’ project which is in line with Goal 7 of Agenda 2063 and Agenda 2030, aimed at promoting environmentally sustainable and climate resilient opportunities to rural Communities.

“The project made a tremendous impact on Nigerians considering the health, environmental and economic implications of over 30 million households and more than 10 million Nigerians depending on firewood as a source of energy for cooking.

“The Agency equally implemented a renewable energy project tagged ‘Light Up Community Project’ at local government; the project was executed under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in collaboration with Developmental Partners,” she said.

Akobundu said that the agency equally aimed at addressing climate change challenges by providing sufficient, Clean, and renewable energy.

“Rural Road Intervention Projects are interventions on infrastructure, through Public Private Partnership community roads have been constructed to improve transportation of human and farm produce, alleviate poverty, provide income generation opportunities, and boost economic activities in rural areas.

“AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria in compliance with Sustainable Development Goal 6 and African Union Agenda 2063 goal 7 with a priority area on Water Security has also attracted Partners’ attention to providing clean, portable, and safe water for rural communities in Nigeria.

“This laudable AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria Project has address issues of waterborne diseases, improved health, sanitation, and nutrition, increased agricultural yield (irrigation), ameliorate problems caused by desertification and drought, and boost sustainable economic development,” she said.

She further said that AUDA-NEPAD has embarked on several agricultural programmes such as the innovative strengthening of smallholder farmers’ capability towards productive land restoration amid COVID-19 in Nigeria.

“This is aimed at reclamation and restoration of moribund land, recovery of over 1 million hectares of degraded land, address the Great Green Wall initiatives, improve tree planting, address Climate Change and promote Zero hunger policy of Agenda 2063,” she said.

Akobundu also urged Nigerians to uphold the unity and peace of Nigeria, that what the country needs is a visionary leader who will do beyond campaign promises.

Earlier the leader of the delegation

Abubakar Sadiq said the agency under Princess Gloria’s watch Nigeria has undergone its second review in 2022 in line with the African Union Review guideline, which he said has made the country nowhere is lacking behind and where to build upon.