The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) has initiated an audit to assess the performance of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects nationwide. The audit aims to ensure that all projects comply with statutory insurance requirements, as outlined in the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Establishment Act of 2005.
ICRC Director General, Dr. Jobson Ewalefoh, revealed this during a courtesy visit to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo. During the visit, the minister was honored with the PPP Icon Award.
In a statement released by the Acting Head of Media and Publicity, Ifeanyi Nwoko, on Wednesday in Abuja, Ewalefoh highlighted the commission’s focus on enforcing insurance policies for all government assets involved in PPPs. He further emphasized the importance of ongoing project performance evaluations to ensure compliance and sustainability.
“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,” he said.
Dr. Ewalefoh further assured the Minister that the commission would take up his charge to train PPP desk officers in MDAs which it was already doing through its institute.
He also urged the ministry not to relent in adopting PPP projects or seek clarifications where necessary.
“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,” Ewalefoh added.
The Director General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Dr. Jobson Ewalefoh, expressed gratitude to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, for his leadership in utilizing Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) to meet the ministry’s infrastructure needs. Dr. Ewalefoh noted that his decision to visit the ministry first was due to Tunji-Ojo’s outstanding performance and successful use of PPPs as a strategy for fulfilling his mandate.
The DG highlighted that over the past year, the minister has presented the highest number of PPP projects to the Federal Executive Council for approval. He also commended Tunji-Ojo for not canceling any existing PPPs within his ministry but instead optimizing stalled projects to enhance performance and revenue generation.
In response, Minister Tunji-Ojo praised the appointment of Dr. Ewalefoh as a sign of the government’s commitment to diversifying the economy and empowering the private sector. He emphasized the DG’s strong qualifications and experience, noting that PPPs would be leveraged to make key agencies under the ministry self-reliant, to eventually remove them from the government’s budget line.
