The Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA) underscores its commitment to collaborate with the Office of the Surveyor General of the Federation and other critical stakeholders to enhance the living standards of people living in Nigeria’s border communities.
During a courtesy visit to the Surveyor General of the Federation, Surv. Abuduganiyu A. Adebomehin, Dr. George D.A. Kelly (FNIQS), the Executive Secretary of BCDA, thanked the Surveyor General of the Federation for the warm reception accorded to him and his entourage and went further to articulate the purpose of his visit. He emphasized the necessity to engage and synergize with the Office of the Surveyor General of the Federation as a pivotal stakeholder and member of BCDA’s Governing Board. The focus is for a robust and unparalleled collaboration between the two organizations on identifying areas of mutual interest to improve the socio-economic conditions of the people living in the border communities.
Dr. Kelly elaborated that on his assumption of office, he quickly hit the ground running to establish the immediate status of the agency, identify the gaps therein with a vision to repositioning the Agency to fulfil its mandate which is the provision of infrastructural, socio-economic and security needs of the people living in the border communities. He said the Agency has within three weeks under his leadership, developed an accelerated Strategic Action Plan (SAP) and a Medium-Term Expenditure Frame Work (MTEF) for the short-term, medium-term and long term with a view to addressing the developmental needs of the border communities in Nigeria.
The Executive Secretary said the efficient and effective collaboration between the Office of the Surveyor General of the Federation will be very beneficial to BCDA. The enormous field data, technology and expertise at their disposal will assist the Agency in locating and identifying Border Communities within the 5 geo-political zones (North-East, North West, North Central, South West and South South) that are in need of basic social and infrastructural amenities like health care, water, schools etc to benefit from the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR led Federal Government of Nigeria.
The meeting made an instant progress as the Executive Secretary’s request for assistance in setting up a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Unit in BCDA was expressly granted by the Surveyor General Surv. Abuduganiyu A. Adebomehin and he offered training opportunities in mapping technologies to enhance BCDA’s operational capabilities.
In response, the Surveyor General of the Federation Surv. Abuduganiyu A. Adebomehin, thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR for appointing Dr. George D.A. Kelly FNIQS as the Execuitve Secretary of BCDA. He said Dr. Kelly’s appointment has birthed a new beginning and opportunity to the strategic partnership that is meant to exist among the two agencies.
The Surveyor General went further to say that his office is willing to offer BCDA staff basic training in AxisGIS and other technological advances in mapping as this will benefit the Agency and the field staff in the course of executing their numerous field work seamlessly. He also enjoined the members of the Executive Secretary’s delegation to give him the required support to succeed in the discharge of his duties.
During the interactive session, Surv. Abuduganiyu A. Adebomehin also warned that working at the borders had its security challenges and communities that have not had government presence could be a bit hostile or non-receptive. He emphasised the importance of collaboration between BCDA and the Surveyor General’s office in navigating these challenges and ensuring successful project execution.
Concluding, the Surveyor General of the Federation in his commitment to the renewed partnership between the organizations promised to provide BCDA with detailed maps showing border communities and landmarks that will facilitate BCDA’s targeted development efforts in the border communities in Nigeria.
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