Annual report on the social and economic progress of the people of Nigeria.

Date:
[1938]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual report on the social and economic progress of the people of Nigeria. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    79/100 (page 73)
    CHAPTER XI i. PUBLIC WORKS. 229. The Native Administrations are encouraged to assume responsi¬ bility for the development and upkeep of local works within their areas : some of them have also undertaken on behalf of Government the maintenance of works and services chargeable to central funds, under the supervision of Engineers and Inspectors of the Public Works Department. 230. Contractors are increasingly employed by Government, and work to the value of £60,000 on new buildings was thus executed during the year. A considerable part of the maintenance of roads and buildings was also carried out by petty contract. 231. The Public Works Department maintains a large sawmill at Ijora, near Lagos, for the conversion of locally produced logs ; this is playing an important part in the development of the timber trade, both local and export. 232. Waterworks.-—Existing water supplies have been maintained at twenty-one stations. Improvements have been begun at Calabar, Enugu, Onitsha and Port Harcourt, and those undertaken at Aba have been completed. The construction of new waterworks has been started at Ibadan, Jos, Shika and Zaria, and continued at Ogbomosho. Seven new schemes are under investigation. 233. Electricity Undertakings.—Government owned undertakings are maintained at Enugu, Jos, Kaduna, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Yola and Zaria, and the Public Works Department also manages three others on behalf of local Native Administrations at Abeokuta, Kano and Katsina. Supply wrorks are in progress at Calabar, Ibadan and Warri, and proposals for other townships are under consideration. 234. The output of the existing stations in 1938 amounted to 18,125,112 units. There has been a steadily increasing demand for domestic appliances, and heaters have lately been added to the list of those available on hire. 235. The Public Works Department maintains a school at Lagos for the instruction of technical probationers, who are also given practical experience under the Divisional Officers during the period of training. An Engineer officer is attached to the Yaba Higher College for the tuition of special students destined for the technical services. The technical probationers have been employed largely on road surveys and investigations of engineering projects.