A section of the TINAPA complex
It’s interesting how some states have suddenly discovered the need to create “mega’ or “economic†cities all of a sudden.
Check one: Lagos. Where the governor has been all over pitch-selling his idea for a “Lagos Mega City” - a project expected to gulp several billion dollars and likely to not materialize for many decades given the way of doing things in that part of the world.
Check two: Kano. The state is proposing a “Kano Economic City†– smaller and less grandiose in concept and scope, but still expected to gulp some $2 billion of private funds.
Lagos and Kano are the two largest states in Nigeria and have very thriving metropolises. They also have one other trait in common – huge challenges keep their cities clean.
While Lagos has achieved a relative success - albeit low - rate of “garbage-fightingâ€, Kano appears clueless and does not have any viable plan of keeping the city clean.
“Our people have no culture of refuse disposal,†Hassam Musa Kari, the managing director of Kano’s Refuse Management and Sanitation Board (REMASAB), the agency responsible for cleaning the city”, according to IRIN article. Excerpts:
He attributed the problem to illiteracy. “People don’t seem to know or care about the dangers refuse poses to life and the environment (photo left),” Kari told IRIN.
But residents more often blame REMASAB and the environment ministry. “The authorities have not provided us with adequate [dump] sites,” Salisu Ahmad, a resident, told IRIN.
Check three: Calabar. The capital city of Cross Rivers is an epitome of sanitized beauty. Yes, it’s a clean city by any standard and way ahead of the other two. Though smaller in size, the city also has fewer resources (particularly cash), and has somehow found ways to maintain the aesthetics of the city.
While neighbouring states in the Niger Delta are “far dirtier [and] have bloated budgets from state oil revenue†the budget in Calabar’s Cross River state government is relatively small”, according to IRIN report. Excerpts :
It allocates 12 million naira [US $102,209] a year for sanitation in Calabar, Edim said, which includes programs to plant trees and grass in the city and raising awareness on the environment with ‘Keep Calabar beautiful’ signs everywhere in the city…
But somehow the system works. Not only does the city look cleaner than most others in Nigeria, but it is also more hygienic. While cholera is common in nearby cities, Edim said it has not occurred in Calabar for years. Other water-borne diseases are also comparatively rare.
Note also that the Cross Rivers is the first in Nigeria to initiate and complete (to a reasonable extent) a “trade/entertainment/tourist cityâ€- TINAPA, the drawing board-to-commission time (of the first phase of the complex) took about eight (8) years – a great accomplishment given the way “things are done†in that part of the world. Check out some great pictures of complex: http://www.showafrika.com/tinapa_commisioned.html
What Kano is proposing is similar to TINAPA it appears, maybe smaller. And certainly what Lagos wants is a multiple of TINAPAs.
I ask:
How can Lagos and Kano - states that grapple with basis sanitary tasks (i.e. garbage collection and disposal, unclogging blocked gutters, e.t.c.) and have yet to master the maintenance of city aesthetics and infrastructure - wrap its minds around and successfully execute a multifactedly sophisticated TINAPA-like project?
Well, while the Lagos governor seems to understand he needs to keep “doing the talk” with his audience (policy makers and investors) by saying “the priority areas of the Lagos Mega City are security, sanitation and transportation”, it will be delightful to see this talk translate to action. However, his Kano counterpart up north appears mute, and somewhat undisturbed by the pyramids of stinking garbage growing his backyard. May be he too should first raise some cash to keep his streets free of rubbish!
