Some of the federal highways may likely be tolled, as the Federal Government is expected to receive on Friday, the Outline Business Case Certificate of Compliance for 12 pilot federal highways billed for concession.
The concession of the roads may also signify the return of toll gates, as concessionaires will have to recoup their investments.
According to a report from Punch, the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in Abuja said that the 12 roads were under the ministry’s Highway Development Management Initiative (HDMI).
It was stated that the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission would hand over the certificate to the ministry on Friday, January 29, 2021, at the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing headquarters in Abuja.
The combined area covered by these 12 highways is about 1,963km, which is less than 5.6% of Nigeria’s 35,000km federal highway network.
The 12 routes which are involved in this pilot phase include Benin-Asaba, Abuja-Lokoja, Kano-Katsina, Onitsha-Owerri, Shagamu-Benin and Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga.
Others include Kano-Shuari and Potiskum-Damaturu, Lokoja-Benin, Enugu-Port Harcourt, Ilorin-Jebba, Lagos-Ota-Abeokuta, and Lagos-Badagry-Seme border.
What the implementation of the HDMI means
- According to a document on the objectives of the Highway Development Management Initiative, this is expected to attract sustainable investment and funding in the development of road infrastructure.
- It also states that the HDMI would maximize the use of assets along the right-of-way and develop other highway furniture.
- The ministry, in its presentation, stated that the HDMI targets to develop an ecosystem along the federal highway network by bringing multi-dimensional resources of skills, finance, technology and efficiency into national highway governance.
- It stated that the home-grown initiative would become the lasting solution to the development, management and maintenance of Nigeria’s 35,000km federal highways.
What you should know
- The Highway Development and Management Initiative was created by the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to manage and develop the federal road networks, with the objective to attract sustainable investment and funding in the development of road infrastructure and to maximize the use of assets along the right of way.
- This will involve private sector engagement in the development and management of roads due to paucity of funds on the part of the government which has hindered road development in the past.
Will the tollgates be in place on dilapidated roads or after they have been reconstructed? For example, Port Harcourt to Enugu highway is very bad shape especially if from PH to Aba.