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From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
Finally, Nigeria’s multibillion billion 2nd Niger Bridge will be fully completed this year.
Giving the assurance, yesterday, in Abuja, at the 7th Edition of Africa Road Builders—-Trophee Babacar Ndiaye Inaugural Conference 2022 in Abuja, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Mr Uche Orji, said that the bridge which is about 84 per cent completed also gulped part of the N311.8 billion Abacha loot together with other frontline projects of the Federal Government.
The projects which benefited from the Abacha loot include Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Mambilla Hydro project and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Road.
While confirming Orji’s statement, the Managing Director of Julius Berger Nigeria plc, Dr. Lars Richter, said that the 2nd Niger Bridge, a stretch of 11. 6 Kilometers, is 91 per cent completed and will be delivered before the end of the year.
Also to be ready this year, is the N134 billion Lagos-Shagamu Expressway which is now about 80 per cent completed.
In his remarks, the Acting Director General of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Mr Michael Joe Ohiani, who was represented by Dr Amanze Okere, said that between 2010 and last year, the government has awarded contracts worth over $17 billion under Private Public Partnership (PPP) and 52 eligible projects worth about $22 billion for 2022.
“Between 2010 and 2021 under the regulatory guidance of ICRC, our government has awarded under the PPP arrangements, projects worth more than $17 billion and as at February, this year, we issued more than 17 outline certificates for projects as well as 47 full business case compliance issued for PPP projects in Nigeria.
“We gazetted 51 projects. In a couple of weeks we are going to gazzete the one for 2022 as required by law and 52 eligible projects worth about $22 billion for 2022.
To build capacity to do this, the ICRC also established the Nigerian Institute of infrastructural and Private Partnership and we have been going around training people, upscaling the skill, building capacities for us to deliver PPP and bankable projects as well as structure them.
“This development plan says government is going to spend N348.1 trillion from last year to 2025. But government is looking at more of private sector engagements in this because we are hoping that the private sector will contribute about N298.3 trillion.
