The federal government is to overhaul the Alau dam in Maiduguri, with special focus on raising its reservoir level and fixing damages resulting from the September 9 disaster, an official has disclosed.

Ali Dala, director of dams and reservoir operations in the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, disclosed this on Wednesday in Maiduguri when he led a team from various ministries on an assessment visit to the dam.

Damage to the facility had resulted in a devastating flood that claimed several lives and destroyed lots of properties in the Borno capital.

Mr Dala, after assessing the dam, told journalists that the purpose of the visit was to evaluate the facility, adding that other critical dams having similar challenges would equally be assessed.

He said that after the devastating flood in Maiduguri, the president had approved an inter-ministerial technical committee to re-evaluate dams in Nigeria.

Mr Dala said the committee members were drawn from the works, housing, environment, budget, finance and information ministries and the Office of the National Security Adviser.

“In the North-East, we are planning to look at the Giri Dam; we did some study that revealed to us that the sedimentation level of about 40 per cent of the life storage of that dam requires urgent attention.

“We are also going to look at Dadin Kowa dam as it is equally critical,” the director said.

Also, he said the team would assess the Ogbese Multipurpose Dam in Ekiti, Oyan Dam in Abeokuta, Egbo Dam, Adada Dam in Enugu, Obudu Dam in Cross Rivers, and Nkari Dam in Akwa Ibom.

“We will also be looking at the Bakolori dam in Sokoto State because studies show that it has a good sediment level that needs to be dissilted; we will look at that, write a report and make sure that the dam is dissilted.

“We are starting with Alau dam because of what happened recently. The federal government is planning to do the needful within the shortest time to avoid a recurrence of the Sept. 9 disaster,” he said.

He assured Nigerians that funds would not be a problem in executing the dam projects.

“The president has approved the release of funds for the execution of these projects through Disaster Release Funds,” Dala said.

Alau Dam, located about 12km from the Maiduguri metropolis, was built in 1984 and has a capacity for 112 cubic metres of water per day.

It accounts for about 40 per cent of the water needs of Maiduguri residents and neighbouring communities. 

(NAN)