Posted by The previous government under President Muhammadu Buhari awarded the $2 billion rail line project from Kano to Maradi, Niger Republic, with completion scheduled for 2025.
Senator Saidu Ahmad Alkali, the Minister of Transport, voiced his approval of the ongoing construction works on Friday during an inspection of the project that began in Dawanau, Kano, and is planned to stretch to the Niger Republic.
As he put it, “the earthwork of the project has reached the 80 percent completion stage, and the actual rail line work will commence soon after the earthworks.”
He continued, “I’m impressed with what we’ve seen as we traveled all the way from Dawanau, where the project began. We learned about the project’s progress firsthand, and the contractors are doing a good job of adhering to the guidelines we gave them.
The minister stated that the bulk of the work has been finished, therefore there is a good chance that the contractor will be able to finish the project by the deadline.
According to Alkali, the contractor is doing an excellent job all the way from Dawanau in Kano to the Daura area, clearing bushes and soil without any major problems.
When asked if the project’s budget would be changed to reflect the higher cost of production, the Minister said that the contractor should be willing to make concessions for the sake of the nation’s progress under the Tinubu-led administration.
According to the prime contractor, Vladislav Bystrenko, the total contract value was $1.95 billion, and the parties involved signed binding contracts with the Federal Government in the year 2021. He went on to say that they had already completed key portions of the project, such as design, land surveying, and monitoring of the entire contract area, before receiving any of the promised funding.
Vladislav Bystrenko gave his word that the government will do all in its power to finish the project by 2025.