Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has flagged off the reconstruction and furnishing of 175 basic schools across the 23 local government areas of Rivers State.
This was contained in a statement signed by Simeon Nwakaudu, Special Assistant to the Governor on Electronic Media.
According to the statement, the 175 basic schools are in deplorable condition and making teaching and learning difficult.
Performing the flag off of the reconstruction of the schools on Thursday at the State School, Rebisi in Port Harcourt, Governor Wike said when his administration took over, the former administration did not access UBEC, pointing out that his administration accessed the funds for the re-positioning of basic schools in the state.
According to him, after paying the counterpart fund, the state now has N5.6 billion to address the infrastructural challenges of selected basic schools in the state.
“The funds for the reconstruction and furnishing of these schools have been set aside,” the Governor said, adding: “Therefore, funding will not be an issue. I direct that payment should be done by milestone. The contractors should be paid based on the work they do. There should be nothing like variation”.
According to the statement, the reconstructed basic schools will have the following facilities: new furniture, sports equipment/facilities, information/communication equipment, standby generator, boreholes, toilets, head-teacher office and table-top fridges.
The Governor said the administration will spend “slightly above N1billion” to build one school.