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Nigeria to build 7 irrigation dams in its South-West region

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The Nigerian government has finalised plans to build seven dams in the six southwestern states for irrigation, and to improve food production.

Dr. Adedeji Ashiru, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority, revealed on Wednesday.

To increase the nation’s electricity supply, Ashiru also disclosed that efforts are in progress to concession the Oyan Dam’s hydropower-generating portion.

He said that the dam, which was built in 1979 and has three turbines installed, can produce nine megawatts of power.

Ashiru made this revelation during his speech on “Developing Strategies for Management of Ecological Challenges” during the Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria’s 46th Annual Conference and Annual General Meeting, which was held in Lagos.

“Building Resilient Cities: Sustainable Development” was the theme of the annual conference and AGM.

Ashiru emphasised that dams are essential in tackling environmental issues like floods because they assist manage massive water surges that could otherwise spill downstream and cause chaos.

He said that several areas of Abeokuta and the whole Isheri region, among other villages, would have been underwater by now if it weren’t for the vision that resulted in the building of the Oyan Dam in 1979.

Ashiru explained, “We are building seven dams in the Southwest, and the contracts should be awarded between now and Friday. These dams are primarily for irrigation purposes, in line with President Bola Tinubu’s agriculture agenda to enable all-year-round farming and boost food production.

“Each location of these dams will have 12 greenhouses and open fields for farming. We will also have storage houses to store the farm produce.”

Speaking about the country’s high rate of building collapses, he stated that ten regulations had recently been created to address the problem of building collapses across the nation in his capacity as Chairman of the Council for Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria’s Engineering Regulatory, Monitoring and Enforcement Committee.

Bukar said, “In the past, the lack of enacted regulations hindered progress, but with the current leadership of COREN, we now have more than ten regulations that we can work with for a paradigm shift in engineering regulation.”

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65% of Nigerian households lack money for healthy food—Survey

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A survey conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that around 65% of Nigerian households, which is about two-thirds of the population, lack the financial means to eat healthy food.

According to the survey by the agency, the decline is a reflection of the multidimensional poverty in the country and the impact of continuous reduction in the purchasing power of Nigerians due to rising prices of goods and services.

And as a result, two-thirds of households in the country lack money to eat healthy, nutritious food, the NBS said.

Titled “Nigeria General Household Survey – Panel (GHS-Panel) Wave 5 (2023/2024),” the survey examined demographics, education, and health trends in Nigeria, comparing data from Wave 4 (2018/19) and Wave 5 (2023/24).

On food insecurity, the survey stated:

“Approximately two out of three households indicated being unable to eat healthy, nutritious or preferred foods because of lack of money in the last 30 days.

“Similarly, 63.8 per cent of households ate only a few kinds of food due to lack of money, 62.4 percent were worried about not having enough food to eat, and 60.5 percent ate less than they thought they should.”

It added that between Waves 4 and 5, the proportion of households that reported being worried about not having enough food to eat because of lack of money increased significantly, from 36.9 percent to 62.4 percent.

On access to energy, the survey revealed said:

“82.2 percent of urban households have electricity, compared to 40.4 per cent in rural areas. Nigerian households face an average of 6.7 power blackouts weekly.

“Cooking typically involves traditional three-stone stoves (65.0 percent), primarily using wood as fuel (70.2 per cent), but with use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) rising significantly.

“Many households lack toilet facilities and rely on tube wells or boreholes for drinking water. Waste disposal is mostly informal, with 45.6 percent of households using bushes or streets,” it added.

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Zambia: APP leader lampoons PF over pledge to reverse forfeited properties

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Leader of one of Zambia’s opposition parties, Advocates for People’s Prosperity (APP), Mwenye Musenge, has criticised the Patriotic Front (PF) over its promise to reverse forfeited properties if the party won the 2026 presidential election.

Musenge, who was reacting to a statement credited to the PF Member of Parliament (MP) for Lukashya Province, George Chisanga, described the PF’s promise as a betrayal, saying the declaration had exposed the party’s disregard for accountability and justice.

The APP leader, who spoke to Zambia Monitor in a telephone interview from Kitwe, expressed shock that Chisanga, a former Law Association of Zambia president, would endorse what he termed a “regressive agenda,” accusing the PF of prioritising the protection of corrupt individuals over the welfare of citizens.

“This declaration reveals the PF’s true intentions, returning to power not to serve Zambians, but to shield their corrupt network and restore stolen assets,” Musenge said.

He alleged that former President Edgar Lungu’s consistent calls to protect his family, who he claimed cannot explain their amassed wealth, further demonstrate the party’s self-serving mission.

Musenge further described the PF as “a political carcass animated by greed and nostalgia for its days of unchecked looting,” and accused its leaders of leaving Zambia impoverished while enriching themselves.

“Allowing them near power again would be akin to handing a butcher’s knife to a thief already drenched in the blood of the nation’s resources.

“The PF represents everything wrong with Zambian politics—a relic of the past clinging to survival through recycled lies and corrupt agendas,” he added.

Musenge went on to call for the party to be permanently eradicated, saying it had no vision, morality, or credibility to serve Zambians.

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