Senator Adamu Aliero, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land Transport, has announced that the African Development Bank (AfDB) has released $350 million to the federal government for the construction of the rail line connecting Kano to Maradi.
Aliero stated this during an oversight visit to the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) on Monday in Lagos.
He noted that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent trip to China aimed to finalise negotiations for securing 85 per cent of the funding necessary for railway modernisation and rehabilitation.
“Recently, a Supplementary Appropriation Bill was presented to the National Assembly, which was subsequently passed into law. This bill included over N530 billion designated as counterpart funding for railway modernisation and rehabilitation in Nigeria. This amount is intended as counterpart funding, with 85 per cent of the financing sourced externally, either from the China Exim Bank, the International Finance Corporation, or AfDB,” he explained.
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The senator expressed satisfaction with the progress observed in rail construction from Lagos to Abeokuta.
He said the acting managing director informed them that the rail line from Lagos to Ibadan is now operational, and the Ebuta Meta Station had been connected to the Apapa seaport, which is a significant development.
Aliero also highlighted the various services provided by the NRC, including freight services from Ibadan to Lagos, Kano to Lagos, and Funtua to Apapa, as well as passenger services such as Port Harcourt to Aba and Warri to Itakpe.
He commended the NRC for restoring normal operations following a bandits’ attack on one of its trains.
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