The Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen, has urged the Nigerian Society of Engineers to come up with home-grown technologies and workable strategies that will guarantee sustainable maintenance of key national infrastructure that support and promote the country's economic growth.

He said the huge infrastructure deficit in the country was constraining economic growth and development.

Onolememen spoke in Ilorin during the society's National Engineering Conference, which had the theme, 'Strategies for promotion of sustainable technology-based and production-driven economy in Nigeria.'

He said it was worrisome that the construction and engineering industry in Nigeria was still being dominated by foreign contractors, adding that this had created a huge capital flight, and urged indigenous professionals to reverse the ugly trend.

The minister said with a robust indigenous contracting capacity, huge economic benefits would accrue to the nation and boost employment.

Onolememen warned that no nation could develop solely on the expertise of foreign national.

"From 2013, all engineering and construction projects below N5bn in the Ministry of Works will be exclusively reserved for Nigerian contractors with the requisite capacity, as a deliberate effort by the Federal Government to help build local capacity and promote local content in the industry," he said.

In the communiqué issued at the end of the conference and read by the President, NSE, Mr. Mustafa Shehu, on Friday, the body lamented the absence of an effective integrated waste management system in the country.

It noted that Nigeria had continued to build infrastructure without adequate maintenance practices and that there was hardly any investment in the downstream sector of the petroleum industry.

The NSE urged government to declare a state of emergency on maintenance of public infrastructure.

It recommended that the Federal Road Maintenance Agency and similar agencies in the states should be autonomous and adequately funded.

The body said it was willing to play an active role in the implementation of the Nigerian Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan framework.

It stated that the development of systems and manufacturing of equipment/spare parts for production should be domesticated through capacity and infrastructural development.

"Government should put in place a robust National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan in earnest and NSE will be willing to partner in the implementation of the framework. Modern and efficient technology should be employed in the processing of waste to enhance health, safety and wealth creation," the communique stated.

Earlier on, Shehu had urged the National Assembly to accelerate the passage into law of bills on the establishment of Federal Roads Authority and National Roads Funds because of the need to salvage the national road infrastructure from absolute collapse.

He said the effects of the recent flooding on the nation's highways, which led to the failure of the road transportation system in the affected states, clearly indicated that the road sector required more robust and quick interventions.

Shehu said to avoid future catastrophe, the channelization of the lower Niger River into the

Atlantic Ocean should be embarked upon immediately to enhance river training and discharge, especially the river did not have clear cut channels into the sea.

He also urged the government to commission a strategic master plan on river restoration via training, construction and dredging to enhance river flow and protection of valuable agricultural land.

He also said that there should be adequate maintenance of old dams and construction of new ones, while de-silting should be on regular basis to ensure adequate carrying capacity of the reservoirs and river systems.