Minister Urges Governors To Establish Structures To Sustain Projects

Minister of Environment, Alhaji Balarabe Abbas Lawal, has urged state governors to establish sustainable structures that will ensure the continuity of World Bank-supported projects beyond their lifespan.

He made the call in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, during the flag-off of Climate-Smart initiatives, Clean Energy and Waste Management programmes, and the distribution of Agricultural Equipment under the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) project.

He stressed the need for state governments to develop robust sustainability plans to maintain the gains of such interventions after their completion.

According to the minister, the ACReSAL project is scheduled to wind up on March 32, 2028, leaving barely two years for implementation.

He emphasised the urgency of putting enduring frameworks in place.

“ACReSAL is a project that will one day come to an end. I have been urging state governments and programme managers to find ways of creating structures that will sustain its impact,” he said.

Lawal lamented that many World Bank-funded initiatives across the country had collapsed after the withdrawal of funding, and cited an example in Kaduna State where projects allegedly became moribund following the exit of the World Bank.

“In Nigeria, we have witnessed several interventions by the World Bank, including ADPs and others, which turned into carcasses after the funding ended.

“In Kaduna State, for instance, some projects supported by the World Bank became like ghost houses after their departure,” he noted.

He acknowledged the commitment of the World Bank in supporting Nigeria through the ACReSAL project and disclosed that N700 million had been earmarked for the initiative, with plans to seek an additional N500 million to expand ongoing efforts.

Lawal explained that ACReSAL is designed to tackle land degradation, improve water management, promote vegetable production, and support afforestation efforts across Nigeria.

He appealed to the governor of Taraba State and other governors to consider establishing agencies, departments, or institutional frameworks that would sustain the work of ACReSAL and similar worlds Bank projects.

The minister further called on state governments to prioritise comprehensive sustainability strategies to ensure long-term impact and continued service delivery under the programmes.

Governor Agbu Kefas, in his speech approved the upgrade of the project into a full institutional framework, as part of his administration sustainable plan for ACReSAL.

The governor explained that the framework will henceforth be known as the Taraba State Agro-Climatic and Watershed Management Agency.

He stressed that environmental protection, watershed restoration, climate resilience, and sustainable agricultural support will no longer operate merely as a project, but as a permanent government institution dedicated to protecting the state’s environment and supporting its communities.