Buhari looking for alternative funding for the rail project, says Amaechi

President Muhammadu Buhari, according to Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, is utilizing alternative funding mechanisms to rehabilitate old rail lines and modernize the rail system in accordance with its 25-year strategic vision.

Mr Amaechi made the remarks at the Department of Economics, Faculty of Social Science, University of Lagos, Akoka’s 2021 Annual Public Lecture on Friday.

The lecture’s topic was “Nigeria’s National Rail Transport Project.”

Mr Buhari’s administration, he claims, has recovered most of the failed locations on the narrow gauge corridor and is also taking precautions in the standard gauge corridor’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report.

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He went on to say that all of the new railway project contracts included extensive technology transfer clauses, capacity building, and domestically appropriate knowledge and skill Conversational Skills Ratings ( CSRs).

The minister went on to say that the purpose of establishing rail projects was to lower transportation costs and boost the economy, as economic activity drives development in any country.

He went on to say that if not for a lack of a long-term funding plan, environmental concerns, degraded infrastructure, theft of railway materials, and an outdated legal framework, the project would connect all of the country’s regions with rail transportation.

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According to him, the railway project is hampered by a lack of required railway professionals, as well as citizens’ indiscriminate disposal of refuse on railway right-of-way.

The minister then urged community leaders and civil society organizations to join the fight against rail infrastructure vandalism across the country.