On Monday, the Enugu government and Austrian firm WANDE NEXUS signed a $100 million deal to implement the Sustainable Last Mile Connectivity and Advanced Metering Infrastructure Project in Enugu.
With the signing, which took place at the Government House, Enugu, in the presence of the Austrian ambassador to Nigeria, Thomas Schlesinger, the firm will inject the fund as foreign direct investment to modernise water infrastructure.
In a speech, Governor Peter Mbah described the signing as an example of the relationship that could exist between a sub-sovereign and a sovereign, as well as a major step to getting water to the last mile in Enugu City.
“We now have an investment of $100 million to deal decisively with the last mile connection, the downstream part of our water system.
“This huge sum shows that the economic reforms of the federal government and our effort to position Enugu as the premier destination for investment are yielding results because this is a major FDI, not just for us as a state but even as a country.
“For the record, this is not a case where we are just signing an agreement that is exploratory. This is an agreement for funds to begin to flow,” Mr Mbah said.
He further said that his administration had increased water production from an occasional two million litres to 120 million litres daily.
According to him, the biggest challenge is expanding the network and connecting the tertiary pipelines to the various homes.
“But with the signing of the FDI agreement, the problem will become a thing of the past as this is purely an investment of $100 million being injected in our downstream water sector,” the governor said.
In an address, Mr Schlesinger said the investment had the strong backing of the Austrian government. He commended Mr Mbah for building the necessary international relationships and showing a strong commitment to improving his people’s lives.
“This investment in the amount of $100 million is, therefore, a testimony of his excellent work and his vision for Enugu state,” he said.
