By Aliyu Dangida
DUTSE—Jigawa State government and United Nations Children’s Education Fund, UNICEF, have concluded plans to provide 280 hand pumps across the state, as part of efforts to provide potable drinking water to the teeming populace.

The Managing Director, Jigawa State Rural Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Agency, RUWASSA, Engineer Labaran Adamu, who stated this, added that the boreholes would be constructed across 10 selected local governments.

He added that the state government and UNICEF would contribute 50 percent each as counterpart funding for the execution of the project.

“The water project will consume  N18.260 million and UNICEF will provide fifty percent of the total amount, while Jigawa state will release the remaining amount for the completion of the projects.”

Adamu explained that some of the local governments to benefit from the projects include Kiyawa, Kafin Hausa, Birniwa, Roni, Dutse, Sule Tankarkar, Guri, Gagarawa, Birnin kudu, Buji and Ringim.

He stated that to further reduce open defecation, UNICEF and the state government had concluded arrangement to build 240 toilet blocks across 120 schools in the state.

He pointed out that the projects would be executed in eight local governments.