U.S. Trade and Development Agency

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USTDA GRANT DEVELOPS ENVIRONMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE

MAINTENANCE CAPACITY IN LAGOS, NIGERIA

LAGOS, NIGERIA – (March 17, 2006) Increasing the capacity for environmental infrastructure maintenance in Lagos, Nigeria is the goal of a U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) grant awarded today at the Lagos State Ministry of Environment (LMOE).  The $251,110 grant will be used to provide technical assistance and training on maintenance planning for LMOE, the Lagos Water Corporation (LWC), and the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA). 

A signing ceremony to officially confer the grant was held at LMOE offices in Lagos.  USTDA Regional Director for Sub-Saharan Africa Ned Cabot and LMOE Commissioner Tunji Bello signed the grant agreement on behalf of the U.S. and Lagos State governments, respectively.   The Commercial Attaché at the U.S. Consulate in Lagos, Joanna McInerney; LWC Managing Director Olumuyiwa Coker; and LAWMA General Manager Ola Oresanya witnessed the signing of the grant agreement.   

The rapid growth of the City of Lagos has already challenged the adequacy of existing environmental infrastructure.  As a result, there are many environmental problems that the inhabitants of Lagos must face on a regular basis.  To address these issues, the USTDA grant awarded today will be used to provide LMOE, LWC, and LAWMA with training workshops to develop a maintenance best practices model and sector-appropriate infrastructure maintenance plans.  The implementation and administration of these plans will improve the maintenance of physical assets within the environmental sector, enabling the Lagos State government to expand services, such as water supply, sewage and drainage, solid waste removal, and wastewater collection and treatment, to a larger percentage of the population. 

The opportunity to conduct the study under the grant awarded today will be competed on the Federal Business Opportunities website at www.fedbizopps.gov.  Interested U.S. firms should submit proposals according to the instructions contained in the Federal Business Opportunities announcement.  LMOE, with input from LWC and LAWMA, will select the U.S. contractor that will provide the training.

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries.  The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, feasibility studies, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment.  USTDA’s strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development.  In carrying out its mission, USTDA gives emphasis to economic sectors that may benefit from U.S. exports of goods and services.