FEC okays $1.96bn for KanoNiger Republic rail project
The Federal Executive Council yesterday approved the award of contract for the development of the proposed Kano-KatsinaJibia to Maradi rail line in Niger Republic and to Dutse, the capital of Jigawa, for a total cost of $1,959,744,723.71, inclusive of 7.5% VAT.
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, announced this on Wednesday after the 16th virtual FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The proposed rail line from Kano in Nigeria to Maradi in Niger Republic is going to cover a track length of 248km and will pass through seven senatorial districts in the North.
The rail line, budgeted for in the 2018 Appropriation Bill, will connect at least seven cities in Nigeria and one city in Niger Republic.
The rail line, which will start from Kano, is to pass through Dambatta, Kazaure, Daura, Mashi, Katsina, Jibia and terminate in Maradi, Niger Republic.
It will connect at least three states in the north: Jigawa, Kano and Katsina.
The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said the council also approved the contract for the construction of Umuahia/Bende/Ohafia Road in Abia State at N12.088bn.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the FEC approved N351,540,000 for the procurement of 1,800 units of laptop computers for training schools and computerbased test examinations at three Nigeria Customs Service training schools in Gwagwalada, Lagos and Kano with a completion period of six weeks.
Mohammed said the council also approved the memo presented by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, for the augmentation of the contract for the construction of Petroleum Technology Development Fund corporate headquarters office in Abuja.
He said an addition of N3,773,784,399.48 had therefore raised the initial approval for the contract to about N14bn.
The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, said the FEC approved additional N745.2m for the procurement of more field forensic auditors for the forensic audit of the Niger Delta Development Commission, bringing the total number of auditors to 16.