The Federal Government has expressed its desire for a quick and urgent intervention by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to arrest the scourge of Poliomyelitis in Nigeria.
This position was expressed by the Vice President, Arc Mohammed Namadi Sambo when the President of the Bank, Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali paid him a courtesy call in the Royal Palace Hotel, Makkah. While, expressing the good wishes of the President and the Nigerian people, the Vice President used the opportunity to call on the Bank to make cheap funds available to both government and private concerns to address infrastructural deficit and boost the Nigerian economy.
Arc Sambo was particular in Hydropower generation, Agricultural development, efficient transportation to improve haulage of persons, goods and services. Other issues that featured in the meeting included availing the Nigerian farmer the opportunity to realise their full potentials by financing their requirements of implements and inputs, bilingual education fund of $100 million open fund for access by interested concerns, freight and air services to convey perishables from Nigeria to Saudi, forming of a Joint Commission and a business mission to
come over and pay a visit to the Bank to be availed of information regarding the bank services, accessibility of financing for other sectors of the economy.
Earlier, the President of the Bank, Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali, had explained to the Vice President, that the Bank has developed a new mode of financing polio eradication and was to be implemented in Pakistan and subsequently Nigeria and Afghanistan. He also promised to create a leasing company with partners in Nigeria to help the Nigerian farmer. The Bank promised to come over to undertake a preliminary assessment of the Nigerian situation on how to work with other financial institutions so as to develop modalities for operations and cooperation amongst them.
Present at the meeting were the Governor of Kogi State, Captain Idris Wada, Minister of State II Foreign Affairs, Dr. Nurudeen Mohammed and Nigeria’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Alhaji Abubakar Shehu Bunu. Others were the Vice President of IDB, Mr. Aboubakar Sidibe and other top Nigerian government and IDB officials.
