CEMENT MANUFACTURERS MUST REDUCE PRICES, TINUBU IS RETAKING NIGERIA — UMAHI The Honourable Minister of Works, Senator Engr. David Umahi, CON, has called on cement manufacturers across the country to immediately reduce the price of cement, insisting that the current cost of the product is placing pressure on ongoing infrastructure projects and increasing demands for contract variations. Umahi made the call while delivering keynote address at the official unveiling of the new corporate identity of Lafarge, now rebranded as HBM, a member of the HUAXIN Group, held at the Lagos Continental Hotel on June 21, 2026. Speaking before industry leaders, investors, and stakeholders, the Minister emphasized that the Federal Government would engage cement manufacturers from July 1 to address the issue of cement prices. “I want to insist that Lafarge now HBM and other manufacturers of cement should reduce their prices,” Umahi declared. “We shall be engaging on this from First of July. Manufacturer of Cement must reduce their prices because the contractors are chocking me to review their contracts. But nobody is reviewing anybody’s contract. It’s the manufacturers of cement that should review their cost.” The Minister noted that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration is investing heavily in critical infrastructure across the country, creating unprecedented opportunities for manufacturers and investors. He urged HBM and other industry players to expand their capacity to meet the growing demands of the nation’s infrastructure revolution. Commending the company on its transition and renewed commitment to the Nigerian market, Umahi assured the management of government support and partnership. “I commend you very highly and I say welcome onboard and we are going to work together. The market is smaller than what the president is doing. So, enlarge your coast,” he said. The Minister used the occasion to highlight the remarkable progress being recorded under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly in the area of infrastructure development. He pointed to the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as one of the evidences of the administration’s bold vision and commitment to national transformation. According to him, the quality and scale of the project have continued to attract global attention and admiration. “When the Dudge Bank came to evaluate our project, they said it was undervalued and that the project is of topmost quality. Today, Our neighboring nations are coming to steal the technology of the coastal highway.” Umahi expressed profound appreciation to President Tinubu for providing the leadership and political will driving the country’s infrastructure renaissance, assuring Nigerians that the administration remains firmly on course to restore national prosperity. “I want to use this opportunity to thank President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and I commit that Mr. President is committed to retake this country. The President knows what he is doing. The vision and mission are achievable and we are on course and this country will be taken back for the good of Nigerians.”
FMW&H Assures States of Partnership and Collaboration to Impact on the People The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Mahmuda Mamman has assured states of the Ministry's willingness to partner and collaborate with them , he made this disclosure while hosting the Executive Governor of Zamfara State, Dr Dauda Lawal in the Ministry's Headquarters office in Abuja over the weekend. The Permanent Secretary said ‘’ The Ministry is willing to collaborate and partner with states in order to make life more meaningful for all Nigerians not necessarily the people of Zamfara state because we are here to serve the interest of the country and we are also ready to do that, Your Excellency." While responding to the request of the Governor, he said, FMW&H and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) will work out a plan to be used as intervention strategy on the Funtua–Gusau Road he assured. Mr. Mamman also assert that, “We are touching lives in so many ways and we really want to touch the lives of Nigerians especially the people plying that axis”. Mr Mahmuda has also instructed, the Director, Highways and Reconstruction Engr Folorunsho Esan of the Ministry to mobilize and put necessary machinery in place to ensure that work starts from both ends of Funtua –Gusau Roads in the shortest possible time. The Governor, earlier in his remarks, thanked the Permanent Secretary for granting his request despite the short notice , he said “the reason we are here today is to seek for partnership with FMW&H in different areas of concern , I am aware of what the Ministry is dong, in touching the lives of the people across the country, l am also aware that the contract for the dualization of Funtua -Gusau Road has been signed by the Ministry. Governor Lawal said that they were in the Ministry for two reasons, first to seek for the support of the Ministry to ensure that the contract startes from the Gusau end of the road and to also draw the attention of the Ministry and FERMA to the bad portions of the Gusau –Funtua road, so that it could be fixed before the major work starts for easy movement as the road is in a very bad shape. Commenting on the Governor’s request , Engr. Esan said " Contractors are only waiting for mobilization advance and as soon as that is done, funding will not be a challenge , contractors can start from both ends of the road , there shall be no fear from whatever location they start from, either from Gusau or not ". Director, Highways Construction and Rehabilitation also said that, in 2020 Special intervention projects were signed for Zamfara roads and most of them have been completed. He said " In 2023 we have planned special intervention projects for Zamfara roads as well to make life easy for the people". ...
Mahmuda Mamman Resumes as Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Works. ... Promises an open, inclusive administration. Following the redeployment of Permanent Secretaries in the Federal Civil Service, the Permanent Secretary posted to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Mahmuda Mamman has resumed office today Wednesday,31st May, 2023. While addressing Management staff of the Ministry during the hand over and take over ceremony which took place at the main conference hall of the Ministry's Headquarters at Mabushi, Abuja, Mr Mahmuda promised an all-inclusive and open administration. "We are going to run an open government, an open administration so that we can achieve what we are supposed to achieve" he said He told the Management staff that he is going to rely on their professional advice and support so that critical decisions can be taken to move the country's infrastructural development forward. " You are the professionals, I am here to rely on your advice, guidance and directions for us to do what we are supposed to do but I can assure you that I am a team player and we are going to run an inclusive administration" he said Earlier the Director overseeing the office of the Permanent Secretary, Engineer Folorunsho Esan expressed satisfaction that the new Permanent Secretary will provide purposeful leadership to move the Ministry forward due to his wealth of experience. Engineer Esan who gave a run-down of the activities of the Departments, Units and Parastatals of the Ministry, explained that the core Mandate of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing is the provision of roads, housing and urban renewal. In his welcome address, the Director Human Resource Management in the Ministry, Aliyu Abdullahi assured the new Permanent Secretary of the support and cooperation of Management and staff of the Ministry. Mahmuda Mamman is an indigene of Potiskum, Yobe State. A graduate of Political Science from the University of Maiduguri. He started his career as a Civil Servant in May, 1992 as a Personnel Officer II and rose through Promotion to the position of Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Health from where he has been redeployed to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing. The occasion was also attended by many Directors and Heads of Units from the Federal Ministry of Health who in a show of affection and solidarity graced the ceremony. ...
Fashola Hands Over Ministry to DOOPS. Engr. Esan ...... launches 10-year National Housing Strategy Blueprint ...... signs Value-Added Concession under HDMI The outgoing Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola and the Minister of State, Hon. Umar Ibrahim El-Yakub, has handed over the mantle of leadership of the Ministry to the Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Engr. Folorunsho Esan. The event took place at the conference room of the Ministry's headquarters, Mabushi, Abuja, Friday, May 27, 2023. Fashola stated that the eight years of the Buhari's Administration did its best in making sure that the promises made to the citizens are kept, saying that though some may not like them, but they will like the work they did “There is an argument going on out there. I think it is a conversation we must have because some people don’t like the party in government but they will like the work we do" he Said. The Minister thanked the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Dr. Folashade Yemi Esan who was present at the ceremony, the Directors, Heads of Parastatals, Heads of Units of the Ministry and all staff in attendance. He expressed gratitude to the contractors whom he said stood in the gap and encouraged them to continue doing the best for the nation. The Minister of State, Hon. Umar Ibrahim El-Yakub expressed his appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari for giving him the opportunity to serve in his cabinet. El-Yakub thanked the Minister and other Management staff for their kind gesture and team work which has helped him in carrying out his functions. In her good will message, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Dr. Folashade Yemi Esan congratulated the Ministers for their successes and thanked them for their support and encouragement to the Civil Service programmes and activities. In his response the Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Engr. Folorunsho Esan, thanked the Ministers for their purposeful guidance and high level of cooperation, pledging to continue to move with their vision, concept and dedication to duties. Meanwhile, before the handover, ceremony, a Ten- year Blueprint for the National Housing Strategy Plan (NHS) was launched by the Minister. The NHS Strategy document is a project in collaboration with Messes FMDQ Holding Plc, which will unleash the power of private capital in the sector. Fashola said government alone cannot provide the totality of housing needs for Nigerians, hence the need to create an enabling environment for the private sectors to thrive According to the Minister, the ten-year strategic blueprint has been designed to harmonize all extant housing initiatives by various stakeholders into a single National Housing Strategy. He explained that despite the numerous housing programmes initiated by the current administration for affordable housing, it still did not provide more homes than private enterprises, stating that the private sector remains the real driver of housing solutions in the country “There is nothing the government does in the housing sector that can compete and provide more than what the private sector can do whether it is a state government building or the Federal Government, the real drivers at the end of the day are the capacity of private capital for providing more houses" he said Explaining further, he stated that the scope of land holding, are from the state governments that owns the bulk of land, the Federal Government doesn’t have as much land as the collective land holding that is in the hands of the private sector. Accordingly. the Minister reiterated the need for reliable data on housing deficit that can put one on track, assuring that the scheduled population census will reveal the real size of housing problems in the country. “I am launching this document with mixed feelings and I say that because, as an initiative of the private sector, the document is an alternative solution to the housing problem. One of the data that will be collected will be; who lives in a rented house; who owns his house; those who have other houses, and what type of house people live in. So, let’s hold our breath; and when the figure comes, it will be very reliable upon which we can see the real size of the problem.” He added Earlier, the Director Overseeing the office of the Permanent Secretary, Engr. Esan stated that, the Blueprint is an outcome of the collaborative effort among the Office of the Vice President of Nigeria, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, PricewaterhouseCoopers and FMDQ Holding PLC. He explained that the project working group had worked tirelessly to produce the strategic compendium being launched today which is an announcement of the completion of Nigeria’s 10-year National Housing Strategy Blueprint and the commitment to the execution of the initiative therein. In his response, the Senior Vice President, FMDQ Group PLC, Mr. Emmanuel Etaderhi acknowledged the support and commitment of the Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo and the Minister, Babatunde Fashola for his guidance along every stage of the drafting of the strategy, while commending the members of PricewaterhouseCoopers team for their work, research and dedication. In another development, the signing of the Value-Added Concession under Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI) has been performed by the Minister. During the signing ceremony, Fashola noted that it is another demonstration of the Ministry’s innovative commitment to fixing the Nations’ Federal Road network through a multi-pronged approach. He said the Highways development Initiative (HDMI) was created to develop and manage the Federal Road Network with the objective to attract sustainable investment and funding in the development of road infrastructure across the Nation. The Managing Director of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Micheal Ohiani, in his address, stated that the primary objective of (HDMI) pilot scheme is to leverage private sector investment to improve facilities and operations on selected routes; infrastructure development by applying a commercial approach that bridges the funding gaps in annual capital budget expenditure, thereby reducing the dependency on budgetary allocations On his part, Director Overseeing the office of the Permanent Secretary, Engr. Folorunsho Esan, stated that as the ministry attains its commercial height, it is the expectation that in no distant time, and in line with the agreed timelines, the financial close time will be reached to enable the execution of the project accordingly. The six successful concessionaires for the execution of the concession contract include: African Plus Partner Nigeria Limited Consortium (Benin Asaba Express Way and Lagos Otta Abeokuta Road); Avia Infrastructure Services Ltd Consortium (Abuja – Lokoja Road); Enyimba Economic City Development Company Consortium (Onitsha Owerri Road and Enugu Port Harcourt Highway); Africa Finance Corporation Consortium (Shagamu Benin Road and Lagos-Badagry -Seme Border Road); Dafac Consortium (Kano -Shuari Road);, and China Harbour Engineering Company Limited (CHEC) for (Keffi-Akwanga-lafia-makurdi Road) respectively. ...
Minister Decrys Contractors’ Low Level Engagement Of Nigerian Engineers On Projects
The Honourable Minister of State I for Power, Works and Housirang, Hon. Mustapha Baba Shehuri has admonished contractors handling various road projects in Nigeria to engage more indigenous Engineers.
The Minister stated this while on official tour to road, housing and power projects in the Norths East geo-political Zone comprising Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa,Taraba,Yobe and Borno States, recently in order to supervise as well as make sure that government’s mandate concerning the development of critical infrastructure is achieved.
Baba Shehuri expressed his displeasure over the low level of employment to Nigerian Engineers “I am disappointed that you employ a few Nigerian Engineers. There are qualified graduates and Government has embarked on these projects to meet the needs of Nigerians, as well as, reduce the high rate of unemployment among the youth”.
The Minister, who was accompanied on the inspection tour by the Director, Highways, North East Zone, Engr. Mohammed Rufai, Ag. Zonal Director, Housing, Arc. Waziri Micah Mshelia and other top Officials of the Ministry explained that the focus of the present Administration is for the contracts to be local content oriented by employing qualified engineers and artisans on the various construction sites, thereby boosting the socio-economic activities of the host communities.
Hon. Shehuri inspected the following projects within the zone;
1. Bauchi States - the construction of roads on Burga-Dull-Mbati-II-Tandum- Gobbiya-Badagari-Gwarangar-Sum, Ningi-Yadagungume-Fuskar Mata, Phase III, Tudun Wuss-Wundi-Baraza-Durr-Zumbul- Polchi-Dot-Kwanar.
2. Gombe State - the rehabilitation of Bridges and roads along Bauchi and Gombe road, Emergency re-instatement of a failed section between kilometer 33 + 800 and kilometer 37 + 700 on the Gombe- Bauchi road.
3. Adamawa State - Completion of Gombe-Numan-Yola road, Phase II, the Rehabilitation of Yola-Hong-Mubi Road, the Rehabilitation of Numan-Jalingo Road Rehabilitation of Gombe-Biu Road. Borno State - the Rehabilitation of Damaturu- Biu Road.
4. Borno State-Inspection of the Construction of Sub-Station and Installtion of 1x150MWAat Bama Local Government Area (LGA),Inspection of Dualization of Kano-Maiduguri Road, Section V (damaturu-Maiduguri) in Borno State. C/No 5880, Inspection of Dualization of Kano-Maiduguri Road, Section IV (Potiskum-Damaturu) in Yobe State. C/No 5881, Inspection of Dualization of Kano-Maiduguri Road, Section III (Azare-Potiskum) in Yobe State. C/No 5871, Inspection of Dualization of Kano-Maiduguri Road, Section II, Azare-Shuarin.
According to the Minister, the Government, determined to address housing deficit in the country, developed a National Housing Programme by constructing affordable houses that will also take care of socio-cultural setting of Nigerians. The houses, which are at different stages of completion, include One Bedroom, Two Bedroom, Three Bedrooms and Semi Detached Bungalow. The construction sites inspected are; the National Housing Programme (NHP) site along Ningi Airport Road, Bauchi, NHP, Sangere Village, along Yola-Numan Road, NHP, Auno, Borno State.
Power Projects inspected includes the 49 megawatts Hydro Power Project in Dakin Kowa, Yamaltu- Deba Local Government Area, the installation of 2 x 60 MVA transformers, 132 KVA Substation at Billiri, Maiduguri TCN at Molai.
Various constraints and challenges experienced by the Roads, Housing and Power Contractors, particularly those working in Borno axis, include security, non-availability of materials, as well as payment. The Minister promised to look into all the issues raised, he, however, urge them to work according to the projects specifications and timelines.
While on the inspection, the Minister paid courtesy visits on His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Bauchi State, Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar and his counterpart in Adamawa States, Alh. Bindow Jubrilla. Governor Abubakar hailed the School Feeding Programme of the Federal Government, saying that it has conquered hunger in the rural environment.
His Excellency, the Deputy Governor of Adamawa State, Mr.Martin Babale appreciated the Federal Government for siting various projects in the State, while calling on Nigerians to support the good work of President Buhari by re-electing him 2019.
Various indigenous and non-indigenous vendors took their turns to appreciate the effort of the Federal Government in improving their lives. Many reported upgrade in socio and financial status and commended President Buhari for a work well done
DRIVING NIGERIA’S FUTURE: CELEBRATING TWO YEARS OF TRANSFORMATIVE LEADERSHIP AND THE LAGOS-CALABAR COASTAL HIGHWAY MILESTONE
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MID -TERM REVIEW MEETING ON THE IMPLIMENTATION OF THE DECISIONS REACHED AT THE 29TH NATIONAL COUNCIL ON WORKS (NCW) DAY 1
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