The rehabilitation of the largely deplorable network of Nigeria’s federal highways seems to be finally kicking off in phases, like the lighting up of fixtures on a Christmas tree.
This is bringing to fulfilment the promises of Works Minister, David Umahi, to repair and reconstruct extended stretches of the country’s network of roads and highways which span 195,000 km in all.
Umahi recently revealed that President Bola Tinubu had approved that contracts be issued for several critical road projects, including the troubled East-West Road, the Benin-Sapele-Warri Road and the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, among others.
Our correspondents report yellow-coloured heavy duty equipment scraping up the grass verge on a construction site at Opuraja Junction, Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State on the Benin-Sapele-Warri Road, indicating a move to broaden the road from about 25 feet to about 40 feet on the in-bound and out-bound lanes.
The contractor handling the project is the Chinese Building Construction Global (CBC) Company, according to our findings.
When The Nigerian Observer visited the site on Monday, December 11, there was no one to speak with, apart from the workmen at the site who said they were not authorised to speak to the press.
Construction work has likewise resumed on the Eleme section of the East-West Road at the Trailer Park section in Rivers State.
The contractor for that portion of the project is Reynolds Construction Company Limited (RCC), our findings show.
Earth-moving equipment including cranes, excavators and trucks were seen at the site and it was said that the plan was to construct an overhead bridge.
Informed sources said such construction undertakings have also kicked off at a handful of locations around the country and many more would take off early in the new year, after the anticipated rush of holiday travellers peters out.
These project, industry watchers say, throw up prospects and challenges. The prospects include the creation of construction and other spin-off jobs on site, as well as smoother, cheaper and faster road transportation in the areas affected, which will then encourage local and foreign direct investments, creating jobs, facilitating agricultural produce processing, exports and foreign exchange earnings.
It is also anticipated that the roads, when completed, will bring about a significant reduction in the transport cost of agric produce to market and, subsequently, in the market cost of foodstuffs to Nigerians.
It is likewise anticipated that the massive road construction projects will test the capacity of Nigeria’s two cement manufacturing companies, Dangote and Lafarge, and that their capacity to cope with orders may impact on the price of cement in the country for the tenure of the construction projects.
Umahi has consistently said Nigeria is switching from asphalt-based roads to concrete ones, which he said are more durable.
“Generally, we have moved back to concrete. Starting from 2024, road projects, apart from palliatives and emergency repairs, would be built on concrete so that we can maintain steady stability in the course of our projects,” Umahi said.
“We are discussing with the Minister of Steel on how we can partner with him on how to get the steel content. He has assured us that before March next year, the production line that would produce the rods we need would begin full operation. We have got those that would finance it and we had guaranteed it. That is the reinforcement.
“The cement is produced here. The chippings are produced here. The sand is produced here. The labour is here. Therefore the local content law as passed by the National Assembly is brought to the front burner,” he said.
The government has apparently been looking to take advantage of Nigeria’s dry season which typically lasts from October to March, providing a six-month window of dry weather suitable for construction work before the rains and floods, which also last six months, set in in April through October.
The projects are also coinciding with the nation’s budgeting process which runs in the third quarter of the year and is the main source of funding for government projects.
Umahi had said that contracts for the rehabilitation and construction of Federal Government roads across the country would henceforth be fragmented and issued to many more companies and that more concrete would be added to the mix to ensure better quality as well as guarantee project completion and the meeting of project deadlines.
The minister had been recently releasing soundbites into the public space regarding urgency, quality, innovation and enhanced supervision in addressing the repair and extension of roads going forward.
This followed strident outcries, especially from governors of many of Nigeria’s 36 states and members of the legislature, concerning the state of the roads and the attendant consequences.
Some state governors had ventured into the rehabilitation of particularly bad sections of federal roads traversing their states to facilitate the movement of commuters and the haulage of goods.
The poor state of Federal Government roads across the country is particularly telling as it hinders human movement and the haulage of goods, undermining the earning capacity of individual Nigerians and businesses and contributing to the rising cost of foodstuffs and other goods and services. It is also a significant marker in escalating road accidents which result in death and injury to many yearly.
Umahi spoke of the need to transform the manner of road contract issuance, recalling the disturbing occurrence of contractors taking on multiple road projects without the necessary equipment and capacity to start or conclude them within the stated timeframes.
“The delay of contractor completion has been identified as the propensity of contractors to take on several road projects that they do not have the equipment to tackle,” Umahi said.
“This has led to delays and sometimes abandonment of projects across the country. This needs to change so that the renewed hope of the Tinubu-led administration can reach and benefit the people,” he said.
