Nasir el-Rufai, governor of
Kaduna, has explained how he secured a $350 million loan from the World Bank to
fix education in his state — with pictures of rundown schools.
El-Rufai was speaking on Monday
at a send forth for Rachid Ben Massaoud, outgoing country director of the World
Bank.
The event was organised by the
Nigeria Governors’ Forum at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
The governor explained that when
he assumed office in 2015, more than 200 schools in the state were in
disrepair.
“I had a problem and I didn’t
know what to do,” el-Rufai said.
“I took pictures of all the
schools and converted the images into an album. Then I approached Ben Massaoud
who asked me what I wanted to do.”
The governor said he told
Massaoud that he needed help and the country director called upon him the next
day.
He said they met and brainstormed
on the solutions to the state’s education sector, with Massaoud guiding him on
the processes involved in securing the loan.
El-Rufai advised his colleagues
to also approach the World Bank with solid proof of their major problems,
provided they adhere strictly to the requirements of the bank.
He, however, lamented the
difficulties he encountered while processing the funds, saying “it took almost
nine months before the funds were approved and it took the national assembly
almost two years to consent and give assent to the loan”.
Kayode Fayemi, chairman of NGF
and governor of Ekiti, also commended the country director for making himself
“very accessible to all”.
He expressed hope that Massaoud’s
departure would not mean he is severing links with Nigeria.
“You are not the first country
director of the World Bank in Nigeria but you are the first that is receiving
this treatment from a set of governors,” Fayemi said.
“Today you have turned the
narrative around. When you came, the dollar hovered between 28 and 36 but you
helped the country and enhanced eligibility on World Bank assistance and helped
to simplify the procurement processes. But there is still more to be done.”
Also speaking, Willy Obiano,
governor of Anambra state, said he found Massaooud to be an amiable person
because they both share the banking background.
He said because of that, his
state enjoyed seven “solid interventions” of the World Bank.
Responding, Massaoud noted that
when he arrived in Nigeria, he “became inspired by its youth; its faith; its
hope; its diversity; its fun and its loving people”.
He reiterated that the challenges
of development are complex and difficult and no one can do it but Nigerians
themselves.
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