The Federal Executive Council (FEC), yesterday approved N115.4 billion for the dualisation of the proposed Kano-Kazaure-Kongolam highway in Katsina State from a single carriageway to a dual carriageway.
The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Council Chambers, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Minister explained that the project which covers 131.4 kilometres is expected to be completed within a period of 48 months.
According to him, “The Ministry of Works and Housing presented a memo for the dualization of the Kano-Kazaure-kongolam highway. 131.4 kilometres from a single carriageway to a dual carriageway.
“So, Council approved that proposal at a cost of N115,425, 896,907.15 kobo over 48 months.
“The instructive thing is that the financing will be done by the Tax Credit Scheme of Bua International Limited. And they will use Messrs PW Construction Nigeria Limited, a company in which they have acquired some interest to undertake the construction.”
Also briefing, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi said two memos were presented from his ministry and that the memos had to do with the contract for sundry consultancy services for the supervision of the various railway projects in the country.
He said, “Remember that we have about three railway projects that are yet to start construction and they include the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri, Kano-Maradi and then the Abuja-Warri.”
He further added that the consultancy services were approved with the total cost of $183.7 million for the contractors including GIX Engineers Infrastructure Excellence/Yaroso & Partnership Ltd, Core Consulting Engineering Plc. “That’s for Abuja to Warri,” he added.
“For the consultancy services for supervision of Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Railway, with branch lines to Bonny Deep Seaport and Port Harcourt Industrial Park and then to Owerri. We have Kyari Consults SDMBHD/Jamood Global Services Limited at $97.5 million. The first one is $38.4 million.
“Consultancy Services for the supervision of Kano-Katsina-Jibia-Maradi Rail-line to TEAM (Technics Engineering Architecture Marketing Nigeria Limited) and that is for $47,670,000 million. All of them are for a period of 36 months.
“The second one is that the cabinet approved a concessionaire agreement for the Ministry of Transportation to concession the Onitsha River Port to a company called Inversal Elysium Consortium. They are to manage the river port for 30 years.”
On her part, the Minister of State Environment, Sharon Ikeazor said Council during the session approved an Energy Transition Plan for the country.
She said, “This memo was presented as a plan for Nigeria to achieve net-zero carbon emission, the Minister said, noting, “this will clearly set out the pathway for Nigeria in achieving this.”
Ikeazor further said FEC also approved a second memo to aid the Waste Battery Management Policy for Nigeria.
This policy, according to her, “will create a lot of jobs in the circular economy for Nigeria and at the same time protect the health of Nigerians to make sure that hazardous waste like waste batteries are properly disposed of with regulations, including recycling in Nigeria as well, Vanguard reports.
She said her ministry also presented to Council, a report on the last COP 26 (the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference) which Nigeria attended, and the country’s plans for COP 27 going forward.
The Minister of State for Health, Olorunimbe Mamora, who also briefed said Council approved the award of contract for consultancy services to facilitate the building of the corporate headquarters of the National Health Insurance Scheme in Abuja.
He said, “the need has become inevitable to expand what is on grand to improve the operational efficiency of that agency, which is the National Health Insurance Scheme and happily, the Council considered the memo approved same.”