The Minister of Transportation, Senator Said Ahmed Alkali has disclosed that states and some private sector companies are interested in investing in rail infrastructure across the country following the unbundling of the railway sector.
He also said the potential of the rail transport system will contribute significantly to Nigeria’s revenue and gross domestic
The Minister made this known Friday while inspecting the ongoing Kano-Daura-Maradi rail project alongside members of the Senate Committee on Land Transportation who were also on an oversight visit of the project.
According to the Minister, Lagos, Plateau, and Kaduna states have indicated interest in expanding railways in their states.
He said “The idea of unbundling the sector is to allow private sector participation. You can also see the huge investment the federal government is making in the sector to ensure infrastructure is in place.”
“By the time you start freight from Lagos to Maradi, in line with the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, we are going to generate a lot of money, it will make a lot of impact on the GDP of the country. By the time we link Port Harcourt and Onne ports through Aba to Maiduguri, you will see the transformation and you will see how it will be next to oil” he said.
The Kano-Maradi railway project will cost Nigeria over $1.9B.
According to Minster, the Federal government is to pay 15% of the project while the partnership company sources for the 85% funds on loan which the Federal government would pay within 50 years duration.
The project which started in 2022 by the Buhari administration is expected to be completed in December 2026.
At the University of Transportation Daura, the Minister disclosed plans to give students specialised training that will make them take over the transportation system as a whole.
The minister also disclosed that there have been serious improvements by the contractors handling the rail construction since his last visit. “I have also directed the contractor to ensure the payment of compensations for those affected along the construction corridor,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Chairman Senate Committee on Land Transportation, Senator Adamu Aliero who led the delegation of the National Assembly, has pledged full support for the project which he said will be of great economic benefit to the country. He said the committee is really impressed by what it is seeing but a lot more needs to be done.
According to him, the inspection visit underscores the commitment of the current administration to give Nigerians a new lease of life.
He disclosed however that the progress made so far has been from the counterpart funds from the Nigerian government as that from other partners are yet to come.
At the University of Transportation Daura, the Senator confirms that a lot has been done to put the institution in good standing while insisting that much more needs to be done.
“It is a national university and for it to be able to accommodate students from all over the country, it needs to expand its facilities. So far, with what we have seen, the federal government must build more facilities.
Currently, it can only receive about 1,300 students out of about 5000 requests for admission received.”
