- Ogun to invest in rail, targets $100bn GDP
The federal government has stated that
it intends to raise several billions of naira from companies and state
governments from all rights of way, advertising and estate developers
along all railway routes in the country.
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi
Amaechi, made this known monday while speaking at the First
International Rail Conference holding in Lagos, tagged, “Nigeria Railway
Industry Moving from 19th to 21st Century: Challenges and
Opportunities.”
Represented by the Director of Rail
Services, Mohamed Babakobi, the minister said the government would
channel the funds realised into the construction and maintenance of
existing rail assets in the country.
He called on stakeholders, experts and
top players in the rail sector to partner with the federal government
and come up with ideas on how this could be achieved.
Amaechi, who stressed that the federal
government was committed to revamping the rail sector, stated that the
government would ensure that Nigerians benefit from the railway
contracts being awarded by enforcing the local content policy.
He said the federal government had
instructed Chinese investors to employ Nigerians where the country has
competence, further disclosing that compliance with the policy was
currently at 25 per cent in the sector.
Also speaking at the event, the Governor
of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, said the state government would
invest massively in railways to grow the gross domestic product (GDP)
of the state from $20 billion to $100 billion.
He said one of the strategic ways to achieve this was through the provision of an inter-city rail network.
According to him, “This would make Ogun
State highly competitive, thus attracting more industries, commerce and
real estate development. The Ogun light rail project will be an
alternative to road transportation to ensure the creation of multi-modal
transport hubs and nodes, which would act as a catalyst for economic
and social growth.
“With this development, the intercity
railway would be used, as in other parts of the world, to drive economic
growth. Lagos State has a GDP of $131 billion and currently has a
housing deficit of over 3 million houses.
“We have the land to meet this housing
deficit and create a $5 billion economy through inter-city rail
development. It is our plan that we will leverage on our close proximity
to Lagos State, and our strategic position as the Gateway to the over
200 million population in the West African sub-region.
“Ogun State intends to grow her economy
by exploring strategic linkages with both the economies of Lagos and the
West African sub-region, providing widespread economic benefits to the
good people of the Gateway State.”
Managing Director at Planet Project
Limited, organisers of the event, Abiodun Otunola, disclosed that
transportation accounts for 30 per cent of the cost of goods and
services in Nigeria.
He commended the federal government’s
effort at revamping the rail sector, stressing that a lot is happening
in the sector at the moment.
He said: “The federal government has
committed over $10 billion in the rail sector,” adding that the economy
could not grow if the rail sector is not fixed.
“More than 50 per cent of our rail
system is narrow gauge which makes the rails very slow. Some state
governments are doing very well in this regard. Apart from Lagos State,
Ogun State is doing a good job in the sector.
“Our vision and goal is to start a process that will bring back the rail system in Nigeria,” he stated.
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