The Edo State government has secured an N228 billion agreement with the Infrastructure Corporation of Nigeria (InfraCorp) and AAA Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (Triple A Infrastructure) for the reconstruction of the Benin-Asaba Expressway.
This was disclosed in a report published on the official website of the state governor, Godwin Obaseki, on Wednesday.
According to the report, “The road project is to be funded by Triple Infrastructure and InfraCorp and supported by the Edo State Government as an equity investor under the 25-year Highway Development Management Initiative (HDMI) Concession to Africa Plus Partners.”
During the signing of the deal at the Government House, in Benin City, the Edo State capital on Wednesday, Governor Obaseki described the partnership as a great financing model for unlocking infrastructure development in the Country.
While calling for such sustained partnership between States and the Federal Government, the governor said: “Between 2000 and 2001 when a Committee was set up to redesign the Pension arrangement in Nigeria, the whole idea was to move into a contributory pension arrangement and begin a process of capital formation in the Country by getting workers in the Country to contribute their pension and these pensions will be invested in rebuilding the infrastructure of this Country.
“That was the dream 30 years ago. I was on that Committee alongside Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. It was the Committee that gave birth to the pension funds that we have in the Country today. Those pension funds have in excess of N16 trillion under savings but no outlet to invest them on, but forced to invest in short-term papers issued by the Federal Government.
“With transactions like this coming on stream, we will be creating opportunities for these pension funds to take our savings and put them into investments that will really develop Nigeria. This transaction for us is significant and we believe and hope that it’s the first of several that will come.”
On the economic benefits of the project, the governor noted, “The Benin-Asaba artery is very critical to the economy of Nigeria because it’s that route that moves bulk of goods from the port in Lagos State, in the West, to the Eastern and South-South parts in Nigeria. You can imagine the cost that transporters and logistics managers have to bear and which has been translated into prices because of the bad nature of the roads.”
He continued: “60km of this road is in Edo State and a large portion of this road starts from Ring Road through Abudu and Agbor to Asaba. The Edo State Government at some point in time had to invest money to do remedial work on that road because we were almost cut off.
“I am glad that the Federal Government has now concessioned the road and not just to anybody but people who know what to do and have real money, not portfolio managers who sign contracts and sell the same.
