Abuja — The Federal government has earmarked N2 billion for the establishment of a National Emergency Communication Centre in Bauchi state.

The chairman Senate Committee on Communication, Sen. Sylvester Anya-nwu, made the disclosure yesterday in Bauchi when members of the committee visited Gov Isa Yuguda.

Anyanwu said that the centre would be designed to provide efficient commun-ication services to the public at emergency periods in the six states of the north-east zone.

"The centre will assist people under emergency situations to reach out to the police, fire service, hospitals and other relevant agencies without delay," he said.

He said that the commi-ttee was in the state as part of its nation-wide tour on the on-going Rural Telephone Programme.

According to him, the rural telephone scheme was introduced to enhance access to communication services in the rural communities.

"The project is to give an unhindered access to communication facilities to the rural dwellers, so that they can to relate freely with communities within and around them," Anyanwu said.

The chairman said that the committee would also review and asses the quality of network being provided by the GSM service providers in the state.

"We will also undertake an assessment of the quality of network available and identify areas where the cove-rage needs to be strengt-hened or upgraded," he said.

He added that the Nati-onal Communication Comm-ission (NCC) had adopted effective strategies to ensure sustainable improvement in the sector.

Responding, Yuguda announced the allocation of 4,500 square metres of land for the project.

The governor stressed the readiness of his administ-ration to support NCC by providing effective security to protect its facilities in the state. He urged GSM service providers to expand the scope of their coverage to enable more people benefit from their services.

NAN learnt that the rural telephone project is being executed in six communities in the state.

The benefiting commu-nities are spread across Giade, Tafawa Balewa, Ningi, Kirfi, Shira and Katagum local government areas.

(NAN)