FG to audit all PPP projects, enforce insurance on assets

The Federal Government through the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), is set to audit all Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects to ascertain their performance.

Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, the director-general of the commission, stated this during a courtesy visit to Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the minister of Interior. According to him, plans are also ongoing to enforce statutory insurance cover for all such projects in line with the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Establishment Act, 2005.

The DG said the commission was already evaluating the performance of all PPP projects.

“Talking about the audit, we are already putting in place mechanisms to start auditing the performance of PPP agreements that were signed in the past: this is not aimed at condemning or terminating them but to optimise them in the interest of the nation.

“When it comes to the issue of insurance, of course, it is a matter of law for all national assets, both hard and soft infrastructure that are concessioned through PPP to be insured. That is one area we are looking into and would very soon issue a directive that all assets under PPP must, in compliance with the law, be insured,” he said.

The DG praised the minister for being at the forefront of utilising PPPs in delivering key infrastructure needs, adding that in the past one year of the current administration, the minister has presented the greatest number of PPP projects to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval.

“From the record of the commission, the total amount of investment that has come into this ministry in your time as minister in the last one year is over $500 million.

“Therefore, we felt it was in our interest to come and say thank you for being our PPP ambassador and a PPP champion, and we are using this opportunity to tell the world that the government of President Bola Tinubu has not cancelled any signed PPP contract under the custody of the ICRC, showing respect for the sanctity of contracts and to tell investors that their investment is safe,” he said.

On his part, the minister congratulated Ewalefoh on his appointment as the DG of ICRC, describing it as a demonstration of the intention of the government to diversify the economy and allow the private sector to play its role.

The minister disclosed plans to efficiently leverage PPPs to make key agencies under the ministry self-reliant and exit them from the government’s budget line.

“We believe that a lot of our agencies should be off budget and we are working towards that because the resources to the government are not even there: this is a country of 230 million people with an increasing population, therefore, we have to be innovative in terms of financing.”