Federal Ministry of Works

Oct

2026

LATEST PRESS

UMAHI HIGHLIGHTS IMPACT OF TINUBU’S LEGACY PROJECTS, SAYS INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS ARE TRANSFORMING NIGERIA

The Honourable Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, CON, FNSE, FNATE, has highlighted the progress and transformative impact of the major infrastructure projects being executed by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Administration, describing them as strategic investments aimed at reshaping Nigeria’s transportation network, strengthening national connectivity and stimulating economic growth.

Umahi said this on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, in Abuja, during a *Press Conference,* where he updated on the Tinubu Administration's *four Legacy Road Projects,* ongoing federal road interventions, completed projects, procurement processes, and the Ministry’s efforts to ensure value for money in the development of infrastructure.

The Minister identified the four legacy projects as the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, Calabar-Ebonyi-Abuja Highway (the Trans-Saharan Route/North-South connectivity corridor, and the Dualisation of Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Biu-Maiduguri Road.

According to him, the projects were conceived as strategic national infrastructure to connect all six (6) geopolitical zones, facilitate the movement of people and goods, open up economic opportunities, and strengthen Nigeria’s long-term development.

Giving an update on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Umahi disclosed that Section 1, covering 47 kilometres, has been completed, while significant progress has also been recorded on Section 2, covering approximately 55 kilometres.

He explained that pavement works on Section 2 were nearing completion, while major flyovers, overpasses and underpasses were being constructed to address complex traffic, environmental and engineering challenges along the corridor.

The Minister said some parts of the alignment had to be redesigned to accommodate existing and planned rail, road and industrial infrastructure, particularly around the Dangote Refinery and Lekki Deep Seaport axis. He stressed that the objective was to develop an integrated transportation system rather than an isolated road project. On the Ondo State axis, Umahi explained that the alignment was redesigned in some locations because of difficult terrain, deep pits and challenging subsoil conditions. He said the redesign was aimed at ensuring durability, safety and cost-effectiveness, with substantial filling and ground improvement works ongoing in some areas.

The Minister further disclosed that President Tinubu had directed that the continuation of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway be aligned with the existing East-West Road in parts of the Niger Delta area.

He described the decision as a strategic engineering intervention that would address the increasing impact of flooding and climate change on the vital infrastructure. According to him, critical sections of the East-West Road would be raised to accommodate present and anticipated flood levels and ensure the continued functionality of the strategic route.

Umahi also dwelled on the importance of the Construction of the Benin City Bypass and other sections of the littoral corridor in reducing congestion and improving movement across the South-South zone.

On the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, the Minister said the project was designed to establish a major economic corridor linking Ilelah in Sokoto State with Badagry in Lagos State. He noted that various sections of the highway were at different stages of construction, with significant progress recorded across the Sokoto, Kebbi, Oyo, Ogun and Badagry axes, while those of Niger and Kwara States are commencing soon.

Umahi said the strategic importance of the project is beyond road construction, noting that the corridor would unlock agricultural, industrial, tourism and other economic opportunities. He added that the Federal Government was exploring opportunities for complementary investments, including agriculture, housing, tourism and other economic activities along the major infrastructure corridors.

Speaking on the third legacy project, the ancient Trans-Saharan Route, Engr. Umahi explained that it was designed to strengthen connectivity between the coastal axis and the northern parts of the country, thereby facilitating the movement of people, goods and services across the South-South, South East and North Central geopolitical zones.

He disclosed that substantial progress had been recorded on the initial sections, while additional sections had been approved to make the corridor more economically viable and attractive to potential financiers.

On the fourth legacy project, the Minister said the Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Biu-Maiduguri single carriageway is being expanded as a major northern connectivity route. He explained that the scope had been extended to cover an additional spur from Jos to Ibi in Taraba State, with design and procurement processes ongoing.

Responding to questions from journalists on the number of completed projects, the Minister listed several major road and bridge projects completed or ready for commissioning across the country. Among the projects, he mentioned Section I of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the Kwanar Danja-Hadejia Road, the Kaduna-Pambeguwa Road, the Lafia Bypass, the Bodo-Bonny Road with Bridges along the Opobo Channel, among many others.

He also listed the completed first lot of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the Gombe-Potiskum rehabilitation project, sections of the Azare road linking Jigawa and Bauchi, the five-span Ampoha Bridge, the 23-kilometre, 23-span flyover project at Ekpoma-Benin axis, and a three-span, 75-metre dualised bridge structure.

Umahi further disclosed that several sections of the Lagos-Badagry and Lagos-Ibadan, Lagos-Shagamu-Ore corridors had been completed, while other sections were at advanced stages of completion.

He assured journalists that the Ministry was updating its compendium of completed and ongoing projects. “*We have quite a lot of projects. We have completed projects and we have ongoing projects. We are updating the compendium and it will be made available on the Ministry’s website and circulated to the public,”* he assured.

The Minister reiterated the Federal Ministry of Works' increasing adoption of concrete pavement on major highways, saying the need for greater durability and reduced maintenance costs is driving the policy.

According to him, the Ministry is developing infrastructure that would serve Nigerians for several decades and provide better value for public resources. He reiterated that concrete pavement provides longer durability guarantees, when properly designed and constructed, compared with the recurring maintenance challenges associated with conventional asphalt pavement.

Addressing questions concerning the procurement process for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Umahi explained that the Ministry followed an applicable procurement framework. He said the special procurement approach was necessitated by the unique engineering requirements of constructing a major highway through a difficult coastal terrain.
According to him, the Ministry identified the need for a contractor with a proven track record in executing similar coastal infrastructure and subsequently made a recommendation to the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP). He disclosed that the BPP reviewed the recommendation and gave its clearance, while the Federal Executive Council remained the final approving authority.

Umahi said the Ministry subjected the contractor's bid to scrutiny by comparing proposed rates with prevailing market prices for materials and other inputs. He stressed that both indigenous and expatriate contractors were subjected to the same pricing and evaluation principles.

*“We put everybody on the same platform. We sent the proposals to the Bureau of Public Procurement. They reviewed it and where they felt that the rates went beyond their expected maxima, they called our attention to it, and we reviewed the rates accordingly,”* he explained.

The Minister also disclosed that substantial progress had been recorded on the Outstanding Sections of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Expressway, with all the sections completed except the Jere-Kaduna portion advancing steadily. He revealed that the Ministry is installing solar-powered lighting along the 375-kilometre Expressway to improve night visibility, thereby enhancing safety and security. He also said that the improved condition of the highway, alongside security interventions, was contributing to safer and more efficient movement along the corridor.

The Minister disclosed that the Ministry had commenced an *“Operation Rescue”* on the Benin-Asaba Expressway following challenges associated with the road and its existing concession arrangement. He said the Federal Government had intervened to restore mobility, while plans were being developed for a comprehensive reconstruction of the entire alignment, using continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP). He stressed that Nigerians should not continue to suffer because of unresolved contractual or concession-related issues.

The Minister, particularly, highlighted the Federal Government's increased infrastructure investment in the South East, saying the Tinubu Administration had demonstrated a clear commitment to reintegrating the hitherto neglected zone into the national infrastructure development programme. He said several major road projects had either been approved, commenced, or completed by the present administration.
Umahi, who is from the zone, said it might not have the highest number of federal projects compared with other geopolitical zones, but it was no longer being left behind.

*“We can't continue to live in denial. What we have been crying for is being given. The people of the South East are being fully reintegrated into the national infrastructure development plan,”* he emphasised.

He cited the completion of the Second Niger Bridge, the rehabilitation of the 1st Niger Bridge, ongoing construction of major Bypasses and other federal road projects in the zone as evidence of the administration's commitment.

The Minister maintained that infrastructure development should be viewed from the perspective of national integration rather than regional politics. He stated that the Federal Government's infrastructure agenda was intended to ensure that every part of Nigeria benefited from strategic investments in roads, bridges and other transportation infrastructure.

On the Tax-Credit Scheme’s projects inherited from the previous administrations, Umahi explained that the Federal Government had taken proactive measures to address them, especially where private-sector partners were no longer able to sustain previously approved financing arrangements.

He warned contractors, who had received mobilisation or project funds but failed to deploy the funds on the work that the Ministry would take appropriate steps to recover such funds. He stressed that accountability, performance and value for money remained central to the Ministry's project execution strategy.

The Minister also addressed the ongoing intervention on the First Niger Bridge, explaining that measures were being introduced to improve traffic management and protect the structural integrity of the bridge. He said the Ministry was installing appropriate traffic management infrastructure, CCTV cameras and other security measures at its Asaba and Onitsha ends. According to Umahi, the measures were necessary because bridges are designed primarily for dynamic as opposed to static loads, explaining that prolonged traffic gridlock can create additional structural and safety challenges. He said remedial works, repainting and other maintenance activities were also being undertaken to ensure the long-term usage of the structure.

Umahi further explained that the Federal Government's road development strategy included environmental considerations, such as the planting of trees along major highways and the installation of solar-powered street lighting. He said the initiative would help improve visibility and the environment, provide shade, and contribute to the reduction of harmful emissions along major transport corridors.

The Minister also linked infrastructure development to the broader economic reforms of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu Administration, saying improved roads and connectivity would support agricultural production, industrialisation, trade, commerce, tourism and investment. He maintained that the Federal Government's infrastructure investments were part of a broader strategy to move economic growth from the macroeconomic level to the grassroots.

On the financing of the major legacy projects, Umahi assured Nigerians that the Federal Government had put mechanisms in place to ensure that the projects are adequately funded to completion.
He revealed that significant portions of the projects had been funded, while loan-financing arrangements were being implemented for the remaining components.

He noted that the administration was determined not to embark on projects without ensuring that there was a credible financing mechanism for their completion.
*“We don't start what we will not finish. And we will not finish what we have not started,”* he stated.

The Minister reaffirmed the commitment of the Ministry to completing inherited projects, while simultaneously delivering new strategic infrastructure under the Tinubu Administration. He said the legacy projects were not merely road construction schemes but long-term investments designed to transform Nigeria's economic landscape, improve connectivity, strengthen national integration and security, and create opportunities for millions of Nigerians.

In his closing remarks, the *Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary (DOOPS), Mohammed Aminu Ahmed, FCNA,* expressed appreciation to the Minister, members of the media, and all participants for attending. He commended the media for its continued partnership with the Ministry in informing Nigerians about government infrastructure projects and encouraged it to continue to provide constructive criticism on the Ministry's activities.

Jul

2018

Third Mainland Bridge Closure For Maintenance Tests Now Shifted To August 24 * As FG Directs Immediate Deployment Of Trucks To 300-Capacity Trailer Park As Part Of Efforts To Decongest Oshodi-Apapa Expressway The three day closure of the Third Mainland Bridge for Investigative Maintenance Test earlier slated to begin on July 27, 2018, has been shifted to August 24 the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN, has announced. The Shutdown, earlier scheduled to last from July 27 to July 30 will now last from August 24 to August 26, 2018. In a Press Statement, Fashola said the shift in the date was arrived at after due consultations with the Lagos State Government and wide deliberations with other relevant stakeholders adding that the date shift was done “in order to give succour and relief to the people of Lagos State and other inter-state road users and support the efforts of the State Government." On the efforts to decongest the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway, Fashola said, in the short term, he has directed the immediate deployment of trucks to the trailer park being constructed by the Ministry with the capacity to accommodate about 300 trucks while construction works for the shoreline protection continues. Also, the on-going palliative work on the sections of the Apapa-Oshodi Road , the on-going construction of the road leading to the Apapa Port from Ijora will soon be completed while the main exit route through Tincan – Oshodi – Oworonshoki is under procurement for award. When completed, the project will enable free flow of traffic in the axis. Also following the visit of the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, to Lagos in connection with the Apapa Port Gridlock, the Federal Government has said, as a short term measure, a call up system in the control of truck movement would be introduced adding that it would be initially manual while the long term digital and ICT based system would be developed and deployed. The Association of Truck Owners has agreed to manage the manual system with their members who are truck operators, government also said. ...

Jul

2018

My Directives On Improved Service Delivery In The Power Sector Went To Legal Entities, Not To An Interloper - Fashola Before fiction becomes fact for lack of a response, I feel obliged to respond to SOME, NOT ALL of the allegations credited to one Mr. Sunday Oduntan who presents himself as Executive Director, Research and Advocacy of the Association of Electricity Distributors (ANED), which he made in response to my directives to NERC (the regulator) and BPE/NBET as contracting parties to the DisCos. Throughout my Press Statement which contained the directives, I referred copiously to the provisions of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (EPSRA) which is the law that regulates the power sector. I referred to DisCos in their capacities as licensees. Mr. Oduntan should tell members of the public if ANED is a licensee. He should tell the public whether he is an investor in a DisCo and in which DisCo he has invested and what he invested. He should tell members of the public that I walked him out of our monthly meeting because he has no capacity to attend and he was not invited. If ANED is not a licensee, who is ANED ? An NGO? If so, they should listen to consumers because Nothing is Going On about poor service. The BPE, NBET and NERC, to whom my directives were made, contracted individually with DisCos not as an association. Any right thinking and well-meaning person knows that power supply has economic consequences and has political relevance. However to suggest therefore that my directives were political, turns reality on its head; because for the past 20 months, in all my public briefings at monthly meetings with the DisCos, these same issues of service delivery of meters, estimated billings, investment in distribution equipment by DisCos have dominated my remarks. However, assuming this was not so, do the onset of elections preclude the quest for better service or continued Governance? If Mr. Oduntan represents the DisCos who, for reasons best known to them, choose not to act to save their investments, that is a matter of choice for them. I do not recognize him because the law that guides my functions does not recognize him. His statement that no directives from me will save the power sector from collapse, is consistent with the views of someone who has no skin in the game. It is perhaps a Freudian revelation of the mindset of those he represents, whoever they may be. It is a sickening parallel of the Biblical story of the woman who tried to steal a baby before the great King Solomon, and asked them to divide the child. It is revealing of the mindset of a saboteur not a builder, and he would do very well to acquaint himself and advise his co-travellers about the consequences of sabotaging the economy under our Laws. While the DisCos reserve the right to choose to affiliate with that view or disown it, I am optimistic that the power sector will prosper in spite of Oduntan-minded personalities. As for the allegation that figures of power generation and distribution released by me are not true, the taste of the pudding lies with those who eat it. Electricity consumers know what their experience was in 2015, 2016, 2017 and today. These figures have been released many months back when we reached those milestones as part of my monthly report and roadmap of incremental power. It is clearly Oduntan-like, to keep quiet at the time, when there were no directives, and to suddenly wake up many months later to dispute what he did not contest. It is obvious that the warning lights of compliance necessity are blinking, and those he represents do not like the colour. Another Oduntan-minded interpretation of my directive is that it is an attempt to demonize the DisCos. Far from it. If the DisCos connect with their consumers, they will hear from them first-hand, how traumatized they feel about load shedding, absence of meters and estimated billing. The GenCos, who are short paid because the DisCos under-remit in spite of high estimated billing to consumers, will tell DisCos how they feel. My directives seek to rectify these problems because I believe they can be rectified. If Oduntan truly speaks for the DisCos, which I doubt, he should ignore the messenger (Fashola) and advise those for whom he acts as surrogate, to focus on the message. The message is simple: Electricity consumers (which include Fashola), want better service; NBET wants its money; about N800 billion, so she can pay GenCos; If DisCos can prove that FGN owes more than what we admit, they should deduct (N72 billion) from N800 billion and pay the remaining N728 billion which they owe NBET; DisCos should respond to the query from the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing as to why 408 feeders, which have a capacity to deliver 5,756MW of power to consumers only carry 444MW because of faulty lines, bad equipment and load shedding? Oduntan should interprete this and tell the public whether it is the Ministry who should fix these lines and whether the unused energy will not reach the consumers if the feeders are put to use. These are part of the subject of my directives to NERC to address deliberate load shedding. Oduntan should advise his clients to spend the money used in publishing media responses to fix these problems to restore bad lines, and provide transformers and meters to their consumers. That is what electricity consumers want, Better Service. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN Honourable Minister of Power, Works and Housing Friday 20th July 2018 ...

Jul

2018

Third Mainland Bridge To Be Shut For Three Days For Assessment * Three-day closure begins from July 27 while repairs begin after report of assessment is received to determine extent of deterioration * “We will try to reduce the period of closure as much as possible. But this is ultimately a choice between peoples’ safety”, says Fashola * “There was a signed statement from my office and it did not contain 27 months”, he maintains The Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos will be closed to traffic for three days from July 27, 2018, for investigative work to be conducted to assess the current condition of the Bridge, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN, has explained in Abuja. Fashola, who spoke, Monday, as Guest on the Channels Television breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily in the Federal Capital Territory, said the shutdown was necessary in order to ascertain whether there had been any material deterioration between the period the first procurement for maintenance of the Bridge was approved and now adding that the three days would be used “to really do an examination just to be sure that there has been no material deterioration beyond what we procured”. The Minister, who debunked the misreporting in some sections of the media that the Bridge would be closed for 27 months, declared, “The first message we sent out was that it was going to be closed for three days from the 27th of July”, adding that the duration of maintenance would only be determined after the report of the investigative work has been received and extent of deterioration known. He said the investigation would have been carried out earlier but the need to reduce the inconveniences that would accompany the closure compelled government to shift the time to a more convenient period when children would be on vacation and when fewer vehicles were likely to be on the Bridge. “We thought that if we allowed the children to go on vacation first it would reduce the number of vehicles that needed necessarily to be on the road and ultimately reduce the amount of inconvenience. But now we are torn between maintenance and safety and peoples’ convenience”, Fashola said adding, “Essentially the first three days at the end of this month, as issued in our Press Statement, is for investigative work to be conducted to assess the current condition”. The Minister, who said it was only after the assessment of the amount of maintenance work involved that government engineers and the contracting firms would lay out the plan of work, added, “I think it is later in the year or early next year that the repairs will then start”, pointing out that some of the equipment and materials have to be imported. Noting that the repairs would “imminently compel some closure”, Fashola, who recalled that the Bridge had been closed for repairs in the past when he was Governor, pointed out that it was shut down for 12 weeks, adding, “We will try to reduce the period of closure as much as possible. But this is ultimately a choice between peoples’ safety; that bridge must not collapse and it needs maintenance”. “It has been built now going up to a period of 30 years and if you recall, the maintenance that was done at that time was not completed because the budget was cut and that was why they did it in phases. So we are back to what we should have done before. It is costing more but it needs to be done”, he said. Reiterating that he was currently not in the position to say how long the maintenance would last until the receipt of the report from the investigation and the amount of damage determined, declared, “For now, the first three days is what I can speak of and it is when we get the report and determine the extent of damage that we will now come back to the public and tell them and say definitively how long it will be”. “I am not in the position to say it now until that report comes back to us. But what will happen at the end of July is three days”, he said, adding that those peddling the 27 months rumour about the duration of repairs might have mistaken the “July 27th” date mentioned in the government Press Statement for 27 months. “There was a signed statement from my office and it did not contain 27 months”, he said. Fashola, who admonished the Media, both traditional and social, to endeavour to be more accurate in their reportage especially of such sensitive issues, expressed regrets that many of the nation’s public assets have remained unmaintained for decades citing the Ijora Bridge which he recalled collapsed some time ago due to lack of maintenance after 40 years plus. ...