The National Hydro-Electric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (N-HYPPADEC) says it has put a mechanism in place to gradually stop the use of wooden boats in waterways across member states.
The managing director, Abubakar Yelwa, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Mr. Yelwa said the move will put an end to incessant boat mishaps resulting in loss of lives and properties recorded especially during wet season yearly.
He explained that most of the accidents on the waterways occurred because of the inability of the wooden boats to withstand the pressure from the wave as a result of their deplorable condition occasioned by age.
The managing director who was represented by the head, press and public affairs of the commission, Malam Nura Tanko Wakil, stated that each wooden boat has a life-span, adding that when such outlived its sea or river worthiness, it became a serious danger to the passengers and threat to the system.
According to him, the commission came up with the plan to phase-out wooden boats and replace them with fiberglass boats.
He said the commission has already commenced the distribution of fiberglass boats to member states in a bid to enhance marine transportation and reduce boat mishaps that have caused loss of lives and livelihoods.
He explained that what individual states get is dependent on the intensity of boat activities in such areas, even as he expressed hope that the gesture will prompt state governments to recognise the importance of water transportation and invest in it as a vital component of the national transport infrastructure.
He promised that the distribution of fibreglass boats would continue yearly until wooden boats were completely phased out.
The managing director noted that fiberglass boats are more durable, safer and offer superior performance in navigating rivers using minimal human labour, which would reduce risks associated with human error.
He said the federal government under President Bola Tinubu is committed to revolutionizing marine transportation and making it safer.
Yelwa revealed that the federal government has been able to remove snags on River Niger from Kebbi to Niger State, even as he said the gesture would extend to other areas within the commission’s jurisdiction. “These are tree trucks, stones and other impediments that hamper movements and sometimes cause accidents on waterways,” he explained.
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