After Eight Years Of Darkness, Abba ‘Gida Duda’ Lights Up Kano Roads

The popular axiom ‘light is life’ can better describe the ambience in the ancient city of Kano today, with the return of light on major roads and streets again. Gradually, the city is coming back to it glorious days of brightness after eight years of darkness on its roads, exposing the commercial nerve centre to security risk.

With the daily volume of business transactions, movement of large commodities and goods runs in billions of naira, are liable to road mishaps with absent of street lights. Unfortunately, that has been the ugly reality Kano found itself; hat was how the immediate past administration left major highways and city roads. However, there come a ray of hope, a light at the end of the tunnel. Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf fondly called ‘Abba Gida Gida’ has brought back light on our roads.

On this edition of Kano in focus, a clear description of how Kano interconnect and city roads were abandoned in dark. And more significantly, the frantic efforts of the present administration in changing the narrative in the last one year and few months will be brought to light. Essentially, the administration of Governor Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf took over the mandate of leadership from the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) at a critical time when the social infrastructures left much to desire.

Governor Yusuf inherited a near collapse of basic amenities; about 95 per cent of street lights on the metropolitan roads and major high ways were left in state of disrepair. The infrastructures incling the lamp, polls and generating machines that powered the energy were carted away.

When he assumed power in October 2023, Governor Yusuf came prepared with intention to turn over the fortune of Kano, practically so, in line with his infrastructural development agenda and campaign promises. Yusuf had, in his blueprint, plans to transform Kano to a mega-city through urban renewal projects such as rehabilitation and upgrade of major physical infrastructures across the metropolis and rural areas.

In the Plan of Action, the NNPP administration is focusing the on completion of Independent Power Supply (IPP) and fully utilize the Kano hydropower electricity projects in Tiga and Chalawa Gorge dams so as to provide energy to power the industrial hub, street lights and some residential areas in the state.

To properly execute the action plan, Governor Yusuf on his first month in office, directed refurbishment of existing infrastructure to pave way for installation of solar power street lights to illuminate the city.

In less than eight months, the first phase of the installation has been completed with 3,563 solar lamp with capacity of 338.5 kilowatts per hour. Similarly, the second phase installation has reached 50 per cent. For the second phase, 4,288 unit of solar lamps with lifespan of 872 kilowatts per hour.

So far, a total of 7,851 units of solar lamps have been installed and presently brightening major roads including Murtala Mohammed way, Zaria road, Katsina road, Gwarzo/BUK road, Zoo road and several other feeder roads in the metropolitis.

With the alternative energy powered street lights, Kano state government is saving billions of naira it will spend in two years on diseal consuming generator to power the street lights. Besides, it is worthy to note that each solar lamp possesses between 5 to 7 years life span, aside the five years maintenance contract, making it the most efficient choice of investment.

No doubt, the light up of our city would improve social economic of small scale businesses and largely reduced the security risk and rate of auto-crash on our roads in the wee hours.

Again, the adoption of alternative energy to powering the street lights has largely reduced excessive discharge of carbon-dioxide in the atmosphere and enhance clean ecosystem and friendly environment.

With the installation of over 7,000 solar lamp street lights, the state government would be upsetting on annual basis about 716.2 metric tonnes of carbon-dioxide, a toxic chemical pollution damaging the health population of the state and contributing to greenhouse gase emission over the years.

Sanusi Bature Dawakin-Tofa
Director General
Media and Publicity, Kano State
Government House.