• Orders Niger Delta minister to speed up re-negotiation on Oron-Calabar road
  • Approves €21m for two tug boats

Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved that Imo State be included in the $60 million line of credit from the French Development Agency (AFD) for the scale-up of the Second Rural Access and Mobility Project (RAMP II).

Minister of Finance Mrs Kemi Adeosun presented the Memo at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The National Assembly had, in the 2010 External Borrowing Plan of the Federal Government of Nigeria, approved AFD’s credit facility of $60 million to implement RAMP in Imo State.

Adeosun said the development objectives of the project, like the first phase (RAMP I), is to improve transport conditions, and bring sustained access to the rural population, through rehabilitation and maintaining key rural transport infrastructure in a sustainable manner in Imo State.

Lack of accessibility, caused by highly deteriorated transport infrastructure, is a key determinant of rural poverty and low agricultural productivity.

The project is designed around three components: Upgrading, Rehabilitation and Maintenance of Rural Transport Infrastructure; Community-based road maintenance and mechanized maintenance; and Project Management and Strengthening of Imo State road sector Institutional, Policy and Regulatory Framework.

RAMP II is expected to achieve an improvement in reducing cost of transportation of both passengers and goods, access to health facilities and improved income from agricultural activities in the affected communities.

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The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, speaking on other projects, said the Council has given contractors handling the Oron-Calabar section of the East-West road a matching order to speed up completion for the rains.

“Council directed the Minister of Niger Delta to speed up re-negotiations with the contractors to ensure immediate resumption of the completion of that phase of road,” he said.

Minister of Water Resources, Sulaiman Adamu, said Council approved the construction of an 80 meter expanded bridge in Karu, Nasarawa, and a constituency project at the cost of N719 million with completion period of two years.

Council, he said, also approved another constituency project, the construction of earth dam irrigation scheme in Gwaranga in Bauchi State. The contract sum is N1.36 billion with a completion period of two years.

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, said Council also approved €21 million for the procurement of two tug boats for towage purposes on Nigerian waters.

It also approved the sum of N703 million for the dredging of water in Baro in preparation of the completion of Baro Port.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said Council approved the construction of the 58.9km Magami-Kwajali-Lingi road connecting Bauchi and Kano at the cost of N15.454 billion. It also approved the Phase II of Abuja -Keffi-Akwanga-Lagos-Makurdi road.

“I need to stress that this the section that comprises 16:0 kilometers, which is the Lagos by-pass, and the section that also comprises 251.7 kilometers from Ninth Mile through Otukpo to Makurdi. A total of 268.5 kilometers for $995,004.95. The reason is that it is the Abuja-Keffi road which was awarded in 2015, for which finance is now available. So, this is the second phase for which the finance is not yet available but the award is the pre-condition to now get the loan from the China-Exim Bank, so that by the time work on the first phase finishes, we can seamlessly continue the second phase all the way to Makurdi,” the Minister said.