By Chiroma Ali Ibrahim
The need to preserve national assets through a culture of maintenance, rather than relying on continued budgetary allocations for the procurement of new ones, was the central message at the launch of the National Asset Restoration Programme by the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), held in Maiduguri.
Vice President Kashim Shettima flagged off the programme by unveiling 375 tractors repaired and refurbished by NASENI as part of its agricultural intervention.
The 375 tractors refurbished under the National Asset Restoration Programme were part of one thousand tractors, about twenty-five combine harvesters, and hundreds of other accessories provided by the previous administration in the state but damaged by the 2024 flood disaster.
Vice President Kashim Shettima emphasized that it is high time the nation stopped investing scarce resources in ideas and projects abandoned halfway through. He praised NASENI’s initiative and urged state authorities to ensure the proper maintenance of the refurbished tractors.
Governor Babagana Umara Zulum said NASENI’s choice of Borno State to launch the programme is both strategic and timely. He assured the commitment of state authorities to maintain the restored assets.
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, described the National Asset Restoration Programme as a means of reviving hope, reducing waste, unlocking dormant potentials, and ensuring that public investments truly serve the needs of the people.
Executive Vice Chairman of NASENI, Khalil Suleiman Halil, stated that the National Asset Restoration Programme is another step in the agency’s mission to keep innovation at the heart of governance.
Coordinator of the National Asset Restoration Project, Dr. Mohammed Yadudu, noted that through clean energy, mechatronics, and the domestication of advanced technologies, NASENI is proving that Nigerian problems can be solved with Nigerian-engineered solutions.
Borno State Commissioner for Agriculture, Bawu Musami, observed that NASENI’s Asset Restoration Project aligns with Borno’s second pillar of its 25-year development plan, reflecting leadership in agriculture. He appealed for further NASENI interventions to increase impact.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kashim Shettima inaugurated a power distribution transformer constructed by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company under the Distribution Intervention Project at Kashim Ibrahim University. The project is designed to boost power supply not only at the institution but also in surrounding communities.
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