Kwara State Government yesterday in Ilorin disclosed that it had expended over N11billion on infrastructure across the state between December 2016 and December 2017.

Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Communications, Dr Muideen Akorede, who briefed pressmen alongside commissioner for Information and communications, Alhaji Mohammed Ishiak Sabi, on the outcome of the state executive council meeting held on Wednesday, explained that the fund was expended under the government's special funding window tagged Kwara Infrastructure Development Fund (IF-K).

Akorede who explained that the council received report on the state’s IGR reform under which IF-K got its funding between December 2016 and December 2017, said N4.97bn was expended on existing projects while N6.07bn was spent on new projects.

Speaking further, Akorede who explained that projects captured under Kwara Public and Private Partnership Bureau was the branding and repositioning of Kwara Hotels, said the Hotel would be benchmark against best practice, saying NOVOTEL and IBIS would handle the project under Accorde Hotel Group.

“The State Government would retain the ownership of the Hotel but will offer Kwarans the opportunity to be part owners through crowd funding arrangement.

“This arrangement will be 100% local contents and expected to create over 1,500 indirect local jobs to artisans, 500 jobs for professionals and 182 direct jobs after completion,” Akorede explained.

Also speaking, the commissioner for information and communications, Alhaji Mohammed Ishiak Sabi, said council also considered requests from experts on the upward review of contract sum of Diamond Split Underpass, Kulende-UITH-Oke-Ose and Ilesha-Baruba-Gwanara roads projects.

According to the commissioner, the council after thorough deliberations on expertise’s advice, decided to approve the upward review of Split Diamond Underpass from N2,930,847,252.06 to N3,639,444,659.04, making a difference of N708,597,407.33.

Alhaji Ishiak Sabi added that Kunlende – UITH-Oke-Ose road project was reviewed upward from N2,385,217,963.01bn to N3,47,86,789.16bn and the Ilesha-Baruba-Gwanara road was increased from N2,156,953,404.88bn to N2,361,904,549.71bn.

According to the commissioner, the upward review of the contract sum becomes imperative so as to take care of some unforeseen circumstances that might jeopardised the life span of the projects.

•L-R: Kwara State Commissioner for Works and Transport, Aro Yahaya; Kwara State Governor, Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed and project manager, Engr. Dory Mastory, during the governor’s inspection of Megida Arobadi road in Moro LGA . . . Thursday