FG Approves $1.2bn For Construction Of New Kano-Kaduna railway Line

Rotimi Ameachi, minister of transport, said in a statement that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the construction of the new Kano – Kaduna railway line at the cost of $1.2 billion.

 

The Federal Government is negotiating with China EXIM Bank and it is expected that the negotiation will end this year to create way for work on the project to begin.

Rotimi Ameachi disclosed this information during a visit to Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State while explaining the rationale behind the project, saying:

He went further to say that the Lagos – Kano rail (narrow gauge) would have more locomotives before June 2017, stressing that “we are trying to bring in about 100 locomotives to move between Lagos – Kano – Funtua and Port Harcourt – Gombe.”

The storm of activities around this initiative, he noted, would greatly impact on Kano and will surely boom the national economy of the country.

The minister then complimented the government of Kano for carrying out the construction of several new roads and other rural infrastructural development in the state despite the challenges of recent economic conditions, which has risen to such an extent that some states are unable pay salaries of workers, describing the effort of the Ganduje administration as very inspiring.

Governor Ganduje, who acknowledged the importance of the rail project, said his administration was also fine tuning moves to commence the Kano intra-city light rail project.

The total value of the project, entailing four routes, which will all terminate at Bata Roundabout in the city, near the Kano Central business district, is the sum of $1.85 million. About 85 percent of the total contract sum would be sourced from China EXIM Bank while the state government would offset the balance of 15 percent.

The Governor concluded his remark saying that “The rail project would save our roads and improve movement of goods and services in Kano, which is the commercial nerve centre of Northern Nigeria, and parts of West Africa,”.