FG Targets November Completion For N752bn Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Highway

The Federal Government has said the remaining sections of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano highway will be completed by November, with the ongoing works on the strategic road now estimated to cost N752bn.

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, disclosed this in Abuja on Monday, saying more than 80 per cent of the cost of the two major sections being handled by the present administration had already been paid.

Umahi said the government was also installing solar-powered streetlights along the highway and would deploy what he described as “superhighway guards” to protect the road from vandalism after observing attempts by some people to remove sections of the concrete pavement.

The minister spoke when he was decorated as the Patron of the National Association of Nigerian Students by the leadership of the union at the Ministry of Works headquarters in Abuja.

According to him, the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano route covers 375 kilometres in one direction, translating to 750 kilometres when both carriageways are considered.

He explained that the Federal Government had previously spent more than N200bn on the portion of the road handled by Julius Berger, with the contractor completing 240 kilometres on each carriageway, amounting to 480 kilometres.

He said another 140 kilometres, representing 280 kilometres when both carriageways are considered, remained to be completed.

Umahi said the current administration had recorded an unprecedented feat by completing 118 kilometres of the road with concrete pavement within 30 months, while work was continuing on the remaining 164 kilometres, or 82 kilometres on each carriageway.

He said the two sections currently being executed by the government were valued at N752bn. “The Abuja to Kaduna to Zaria to Kano is 375 kilometers by two. 750 kilometers. The President funded part of this project under Julius Berger. We have spent over 200 billion under Julius Berger. They achieved 240 kilometers by two. That’s 480. Remaining 140 kilometers by two. That’s 280 kilometers.

“For the first time, we are able to complete 118 kilometers of Route 118 on concrete pavement within 30 months. Never happened. Never happened. And today we are battling with the remaining 164 kilometers. That’s 82 kilometers by two. Both of these projects are costing us 752 billion under the President.

“Over 80 per cent has been paid. We are believing that by November the entire stretch would have been completed. We are putting up solar lights. Every 30 meters, you have four poles. All true. I just came back from Lagos where we inaugurated the coastal guards. We are also going to inaugurate Abuja, Kaduna, Zaria, Kano Superhighway guards. Because I saw people digging the concrete to remove roads.”

The minister said the Federal Government was determined to ensure that the huge investment in the highway was protected from vandalism and other acts capable of undermining the road after completion.

He said the proposed guards would complement the government’s infrastructure protection efforts, particularly as the road would serve as a major transport corridor linking the Federal Capital Territory with Kaduna, Zaria and Kano.

Umahi also used the occasion to defend the administration’s spending on infrastructure, arguing that the projects were creating jobs and opening economic opportunities across the country.

He said every major construction site had generated direct and indirect employment, stressing that the infrastructure investments should not be viewed merely as government expenditure.

“But I have said that if they can commit to that level, just half of it is a meaningful job. Every state has a construction site. It’s a construction site by the President. We earn much more than that. You’re digging all day long to get one road. But we have a lot of opportunities. There is no site in all these projects here that has fewer than a thousand people. Direct jobs and indirect jobs.”

Umahi also vowed that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will be completed regardless of the attacks, stressing that over 50 per cent of the entire stretch has already been completed.

He further urged Nigerian youths to look beyond political arguments and assess the performance of the administration through tangible projects and economic indicators.

He said the National Association of Nigerian Students had a responsibility to interrogate national issues objectively rather than allow social media narratives and political sentiments to dominate public discourse.

“Nobody will deceive you. Nobody will say go and check the records. Where are the records? You are the one telling me my records. I didn’t ask you to go and check. You have checked, and you are telling me. This is very important. Talk is cheap. The President is staying awake.

“You may say you are not a politician. You may say you will not take sides. This is the time to take sides in our national affairs. It’s time to take sides. You may say that the micro-economy, you know, is just beginning to breathe. What was it before the President took over? Everybody agrees that the macroeconomy is fixed. And it is up to you, who are more learned than us, to dissect the ongoing reforms and be able to take a stand. And by this declaration, you have taken a stand. You have taken a stand.”

The minister said the administration had embarked on major road projects across different parts of the country, including the Sokoto-Zamfara-Zaria corridor and the Enugu-Port Harcourt route.

According to him, the Sokoto-Zamfara-Zaria road, inherited by the administration, covers about 350 kilometres in one direction, or 700 kilometres for the dual carriageway, with the project estimated at more than N870bn.

He said the government had changed the pavement design for the project to reinforced concrete to improve its durability.

“Look at Sokoto to Zamfara. You know, down to Zaria. 350 kilometers. We inherited it. We inherited it. The total cost of that project is 350 by 2,700 kilometers. Total cost is about 870bn. We have changed the pavement texture to reinforced concrete. That project is ongoing.”

On the Enugu-Port Harcourt corridor, Umahi said the road covered about 260 kilometres in one direction, making 520 kilometres when both carriageways were considered, with the project valued at $959m.

He disclosed that the government had also introduced a flyover at a location along the Benue section of the road after identifying the danger posed to motorists and residents.

“Look at it from Benue, you know, down to 9th Mile in Enugu. That’s 260 kilometers by 2, 520. The total cost of that project is 959 million U.S. dollars. I introduced a flyover, which was outside the project. But because of the commitment of the President’s administration for the welfare of the people, we just saw it there. And I went back to the President and said, do I have your permission to introduce the flyover? Because people will die. And he said, go ahead. Today, that flyover is almost done.”

The minister also cited the reconstruction of the Buruku Bridge and the Bonny-Bodo Road as other major projects being executed by the Federal Government. He said the Buruku Bridge project was more than 80 per cent complete, while the Bonny-Bodo Road, valued at N280bn, had been completed.

According to him, the 39.7-kilometre Bonny-Bodo Road had ended the long dependence of residents on sea transportation for movement between Bonny Island and the mainland.

The development of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano highway has remained a major infrastructure priority because of its importance to the movement of people, agricultural produce and goods between the Federal Capital Territory and some of the country’s major commercial centres in the North.

The project has also attracted significant government spending over the years, with different sections handled under successive administrations and contractors.

Umahi’s latest projection puts the completion of the remaining sections in November, meaning the government is racing against time to finish the outstanding works while simultaneously putting measures in place to protect the completed pavement from vandalism.

The planned solar lighting and highway security arrangement will add another layer to the road project, as the government seeks not only to complete the highway but also to keep the strategic corridor operational and secure after construction.

The PUNCH reports that the minister also approved the procurement of eight buses for the Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement and the office of the APC National Youth Coordinator, as well as one car each for the NANS president and the office of the NANS Senate President, and approved an undisclosed amount as a budget for project monitoring by the students’ leadership.

COURTESY: PUNCH