PEWAN Rallies Critical Stakeholders at Lectures and Awards.

By Abiola PETERS 

Critical stakeholders have set new timelines on construction matters and volatile environmental issues.

at the 2023 Annual Lecture and Awards organised by the Property and Environment Writers Association of Nigeria (PEWAN),

with the theme “Technology as the New Normal in Modern Infrastructure Delivery.”

In his paper entitled “Construction Using Rigid Pavement,” Group Head, Corporate Communication, Dangote Group, Mr. Anthony Chiejina, implored professionals in the built environment to support advocacy for the use of rigid pavements for road construction.

Mr. Chiejina said rigid pavement construction was more durable, with a life span of over 40 years, as opposed to 15 years or less for bitumen.

He commended the Minister of Works, Mr. David Umahi, for introducing rigid pavements, adding that the minister was misunderstood in his good intention for quality road infrastructure delivery in Nigeria, noting that several people opposed to the use of concrete were not cement manufacturers, yet crying foul that rigid road construction would cause an increase in cement prices.

Mr. Chiejina urged journalists, engineers, and other experts in the built sector to explain the benefits of rigid pavement to Nigerians as the needed solutions to bridging the road infrastructure deficit in the nation.

He said flexible pavements, also called asphalt roads, might be cheaper to construct but, in the long run, more expensive due to regular maintenance from constant degeneration.

Mr. Chiejina also listed the environment-friendly attributes of the rigid pavements in addition to the opportunity for recycling the materials, a situation not possible with flexible alternatives that cause high pollution and other dangers.

“From an environmental standpoint, the entire flexible pavement process is more polluting,” he said.

Mr. Chiejina, who received an award on behalf of the Dangote Group, commended PEWAN for the annual conference, aimed at setting an agenda for infrastructure development in Nigeria.

There were also lectures on How Advocacy Can Drive Growth in the Real Estate Sector by Builder Hakeem Oguniran and Technology as the New Normal Infrastructure Delivery and How Advocacy Can Drive Growth in the Real Estate Sector by Dr Olajide FAREMI, Head, Department of Building,

Faculty Of Environmental Sciences,

University of Lagos.

Chairman of the occasion, Mr. Offiong Ukpong, commended the Property and Environment Writers Association of Nigeria (PEWAN) for its robust reportage of the built sector and also for organising an annual lecture in which the government and other critical stakeholders should consider the recommendations that it produces for further advancement of the sector.

Earlier, the chairperson of the Property and Environment Writers Association of Nigeria (PEWAN), Mrs. Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie, said the annual lecture and awards were an avenue through which the members of the pen-pushing profession steer the direction of public discourse on construction matters and volatile environmental issues.

Mrs. Iroegbu-Chikezie said PEWAN, a sub-group under the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), had existed since 1995 with a membership that cuts across print, electronic, and online media platforms.

“The PEWAN Lecture and Awards is an avenue through which we, the members of the pen-pushing profession, steer the direction of public discourse on construction matters and volatile environmental issues.”

Award recipients at the event include the Dangote Group and Engineer Adedamola Kuti, Director, Highways Construction and Rehabilitation, Federal Ministry of Works.

Others are Mr. Kunle Awobodu, Founder/Inaugural President, of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG); Deacon Babajide Durojaiye, Managing Director, Legrande Group; and Mr. Festus Adebayo, CEO, of Fesadeb Media Group.

Also awarded were Mr. John Beecroft, Managing Director, Tetramanor Ltd; Mr. Emeka Anyiam, Chief Executive Officer, PWAN Elite; and Mr. Samuel Oni, Managing Director/CEO, Convvy Estates Ltd, among others who had made an impact in the sector.