23rd August, 2010
The Lagos State Government has handed over 119 solar electrification projects to rural communities across the state.
The communities are villages in remote parts of the state that could not be reached with power supply from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) Plc.
Some of the projects were handed over to some communities in Badagry area of the state by the Ministry of Rural Development last week.
According to the Commissioner, Rural Development, Prince Lanre Balogun, the solar projects were conceived to provide light for rural communities where power supply from the Federal Government could not reach.
“Through this, they now have street lights and a place where they can charge their cell phones so that they can communicate with their colleagues outside their villages.
“There is nowhere in Lagos that is too far for us to go. This solar power will work in the rain and in the sun, all that is needed for the equipment to function is maintenance and we have our engineers to carry out maintenance work on the projects.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr. Olalekan Ifemade, called on the communities to watch over the projects and prevent them from being vandalised.
Ifemade, who represented Governor Babatunde Fashola in handing over the projects, said solar electrification was the best he had seen so far, saying that with the projects, life had returned to rural communities.
The rural solar electrification projects were part of the 500 projects handed over to rural communities across the state in order to better the lots of rural dwellers and stem rural-urban drift.
Other projects handed over to rural communities in Badagry are Neighbourhood Watch security post, rural electrification, community hall, pilot community piggery project and rural water project.
“We have been able to deliver these projects to these communities based on our promises and we are satisfied with the quality of the projects. People have accepted this government in its entirety. When we said we will deliver 500 projects to rural communities a year ago, many people did not believe us,†he added.