Feb

23

2024

Federal Ministry of Works Finalizes Discussion with Janson Bridging International, Netherland on a €25-Million Grant for Construction of 28 Priority Bridges in Nigeria, Set to Fine-Tune Processes and Documentations with Federal Ministry of Finance to Realize the Project

1. In keeping with the initiative to think outside the box in rejiggling the nation's economy by the Renewed Hope administration of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON has finalized discussions with investors from Netherland to attract a grant of 25 million Euros for the construction of priority bridges in Nigeria.

2. This was disclosed after a meeting of the Honourable Minister of Works with a team of investors from Netherland led by the Nigerian Ambassador to Netherland, His Excellency Oluremi Oliyide. The Honourable Minister assured the team of the positive disposition of the Federal Government towards accessing international interventions from donor agencies and other development partners to address the infrastructural deficits inhibiting economic development in Nigeria. He said that an increase in partnerships and collaborations was necessary to support the funding of the critical sector of the economy for the promotion of robust and equitable economic growth. He assured the investors that once due diligence was carried out, he would present the proposal to Mr. President for approval. He said" We have a number of projects that we can do together. But I think the best thing to do is to conclude this one, which is a grant, then get the process started, and at the point of agreement and project selection, we shall refer to Mr. President for his approval".

3. In his earlier remarks, the Nigerian Ambassador to Netherland said the team was in his office to discuss the offer of a grant of 25 million Euros by Janson Bridging International for investment in road infrastructure in Nigeria. According to him, "Janson Bridging is the largest modular bridge manufacturing and bridging company in continental Europe and the largest bridge rental company in the world. " He promised to assist in fast tracking the agreement implementation process on the side of the company as soon as all formalizations were concluded.

4. On his own part, a member of the team and International Business Consultant, Eric Okunde, said the investors were ready  with the proposal  and that they  were technically  prepared  to work  with the Federal Ministry of Works in the mapping  and design  of the projects as well as the formulation of the template for the execution of the project.

Feb

20

2024

Civil Servants in the Federal Ministry of Works Celebrate Sen. Umahi For Quality Leadership and Commitment to the Welfare of Workers

1. It was a day of joy, eulogies and encomiums as civil servants in the Federal Ministry of Works, Mabushi-Abuja rolled out their drums to celebrate and honour the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen Engr Nweze David Umahi CON for his quality leadership and sense of devotion to the welfare of the workers of the Ministry. The workers under the aegis of Joint Union, Federal Ministry of Works took the Honourable Minister by surprise as they converged at the Ministry’s Main Hall on Tuesday, 20th February 2024 and sought an audience with him through their Permanent Secretary, Dr. Yakubu Adam Kofaramata.

2. The Honourable Minister, in his usual unassuming mannerism and deep sense of responsiveness, came down to see his workers and behold it was a mammoth crowd of over 1500 workers in the Ministry's headquarters who were seated to thank him for the quality leadership and devotion to the workers well-being which they have continued to enjoy since he came on board as Hon. Minister of Works.

3. The Honourable Minister was honoured with a 'Pragmatic Leadership Award' by the Joint Union of the Ministry. The workers also danced a treat with the Honourable Minister in demonstration of their love for his leadership style, which they said was unprecedented in the history of the establishment of the Federal Ministry of Works.

4. Speaking during the event, the Honourable Minister of Works thanked the workers for the surprise reception by the workers and the award of honour given to him by the workers. He particularly thanked the leadership of the Joint Union of the Ministry for their sense of happiness and thankfulness, which they demonstrated through their surprise reception. He promised to continue to serve the purpose of his appointment with the deepest sense of responsibility and in undiluted collaboration with the workforce. He announced the commencement of training programmes for the Ministry's workers from grade level 14 and above and the establishment of the Ministry's Welfare Fund for the staff to enhance their happiness, effective March 2024. He also announced the involvement of the Ministry's staff in the monitoring and evaluation of the projects executed by the Ministry nationwide and the reactivation of the whistle blowers’ desk of the Ministry to assist in reporting jobs not done in accordance with the Ministry's specifications. He urged civil servants all over the country to take Nigeria first in the dispensation of their public duties, adding that the Renewed Hope administration of His Excellency President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR means well for Nigeria and deserves from all the support and cooperation needed for him to achieve enduring solutions to our socio-economic problems. He said, "I want to assure you that Mr. President feels your problems, and he's working out something day and night to give a solution to the teething problems facing the country. You see, the problem of our country is the problem of all of us. We need to bring back to society what we've taken from society. We need to do that. It's not the blame of the President, it's not the blame of the past President. Americans will always say America first".

5. Speaking on behalf of the entire staff, the Permanent Secretary praised the professional and administrative capacities of the Hon. Minister of Works.  The Permanent Secretary described him as a super intelligent, action-packed, and vision -driven Minister who recognizes and values the potential of the workers. He said, “The workers, and indeed, Nigerians, are happy with Mr. President for appointing a round peg to head the Federal Ministry of Works. We assure you that we will continue to work loyally with the core values of honesty, integrity, industry, and objectivity for the good of our Ministry.

6. Presenting the award of honour to the Honourable Minister, the Chairman of the Joint Union, Mr. Omobolanle Kuti stated that the event was organized for all the workers to give honour to whom honour is due. He stated that the Hon. Minister has shown a good example of a compassionate leader who cares for the welfare of his people and the progress of his fatherland.  He continued" You have shown a great difference in the way you care for our welfare, in the way you attend to mails, in supervising the projects executed under the Ministry, in your power of contract negotiations and assuring best standards in the delivery of road projects. You even supervise projects on weekends and public holidays, you come to the office early and go very late. No mail delays in your office for more than 24 hours.  We are proud of you. "

7. In his vote of thanks, the Director, Human Resources Mr. Aliyu Abdallahi appreciated the Hon. Minister for his selfless service and care for the wellbeing of the civil servants in the Ministry and described him as a special breed of politician who works for the good of all persons despite their place of origin. He also described him as a leader who builds the capacities of workers irrespective of their grade levels or competences. He prayed God to continue to prosper the Hon. Minister with greater innovative powers and benevolence of heart as he works to actualize the mandate of the Federal Ministry of Works.

Feb

19

2024

Meeting of Cement Manufacturers – Dangote Cement Plc, BUA Cement Plc, Larfarge Africa Plc & Cement Producers Association with the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade & Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite and the Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON held at the Office of the Honourable Minister of Works, Mabushi, Abuja on Monday, 19th February, 2024

1. The meeting noted the challenges of the manufacturers like:
    a.    Cost of gas;
    b.    High import duty on spare parts;
    c.    Bad road network;
    d.    High foreign exchange; and
    e.    Smuggling of cement to neighbouring nations.

2.    The government noted the challenges and reacted as follows:
a.    Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to seek some remedies from Mr. President on cost of gas and import duties.

b.    Federal Ministry of Works to give more attention to fixing of the roads, especially around the locations of the manufacturers.

c.    On the issue of smuggling cement, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to deepen the already started engagement with the National Security Adviser on how to stop the smuggling.

3.     The cement manufacturers and the Government noted that the current high price of cement is abnormal in some locations nationwide.  Ideally, cement retail prices should not cost more than ₦7,000.00 to ₦8,000.00/ 50kg bag of cement.  Therefore, the three cement manufacturers: Dangote Cement Plc, BUA Cement Plc and Larfarge Africa Plc have agreed that cement cost will not be more than between ₦7,000.00 and ₦8,000.00/50kg bag depending on the location.

4.    Going forward, Government advised cement manufacturers to set up a price monitoring mechanism to ensure compliance, and manufacturers have willingly accepted to do so and to sanction any of her distributors or retailers found wanting.

5.    Government expects the agreed price to drop after securing government's interventions on the challenges of the manufacturers on gas, import duty, smuggling, and better road network.

6.    The meeting agreed to reconvene in 30 days to review progress made.

Feb

17

2024

President Tinubu Directs Works Minister to Interface with Cement Manufacturers Over Increase in Price

.....Umahi re-inspects Contractor’s work on East-West Road.

President Bola Tinubu has directed an immediate interface with major cement manufacturers in the country over rising price of cement, says the Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. David Umahi, CON.

Speaking to journalists Saturday after the latest round of inspection section 3 of the ongoing rehabilitation of East-West highway, the Honourable Minister disclosed that President was seriously concerned with current situation of increase in cement prices.

Sen. Umahi observed about the current price of cement that “some are still selling sometimes, you know, 10,000 naira sometimes 12,000 naira; and so, on and so forth.”

He added that “So it's not healthy for us. So, Mr. President has directed that we should interface with them, look at their problems, and then see who is, you know, ripping off Nigerians and see how we can help them, the transporters and then the manufacturers.”

“And that's what we're going to do on Monday,” in the meeting with Dangote Plc, BUA Plc, Lafarge Plc and others.

While commending the level of work on the East-West highway, he informed that “our job as a ministry is to encourage the contractor to do a good job according to design and according to the expectation of Nigerians.”

Continuing, he noted the impact of new engineers deployed by the Contractor, “he is a very well qualified, registered engineer. And we have met on other projects and technically he is very good. So, I am very happy for that.”

On the need to expedite work on the project, the Honourable Minister said “there is an increase in the number of sections that we are working on, because of how urgent this job is, we should have more sections. They have opened about five sections. We should have almost all the sections being worked upon.”

Commenting on the percentage of work done by the Contractor, the Honourable Minister said “well, we can't talk in terms of percentage. If we get all the quality jobs like this, then I'll go to sleep, because this is the major.”

According to him, “the foundation of every structure is more important than the structure itself. So, we are more interested in getting this done.

“When this is done, to lay the concrete, it's not going to be difficult at all. But this is the most difficult.”

He assured that the coming of rains should not be a stumbling block to the progress work, noting that a different design would be deployed, “and that's what we are doing in a lot of our interventions on the East-West Road.”

Sen. Umahi used the opportunity to reiterate that the tax credit scheme is still continuing saying “it is very obvious, and we've said it, you know, that the President never stopped any of the project, not NNPCL tax credits. He never.”

“In fact, he has also, based on the first module, given approval that we can review the projects,” he stressed.

The Honourable Minister however emphasized that “we are bound to review it. And we've started reviewing it. And we've reviewed this one. Fortunately for us, the contract of this one has not increased, even though we have redesigned it”.

Earlier, the Honourable Minister, Sen. Umahi attended Senator Barinada Mpigi’s thanksgiving service held in his hometown, Okoroma in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State. Senator Mpigi represents South-East senatorial zone of Rivers State in the Senate.

Feb

15

2024

Works Ministry, Engineering Bodies Resolve to Strengthen Partnership on Road Sector Development

The Federal Ministry of Works and the two foremost engineering bodies in Nigeria, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) and the Council for Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, (COREN) have resolved to strengthen existing partnership in the bid to work together for the realization of the Renewed Hope Agenda for the road sector.

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr. Yakubu Kofamata stated this Thursday in Abuja when the Executive Committee of the NSE and COREN paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.  

Speaking about the importance of the partnership between the Ministry and the engineering bodies, the Minister noted that working in synergy with relevant regulatory and professional organisations in the sector should surely impact road infrastructure development in the country.

 He emphasized that the Ministry’s collaboration in the area of training and re-training of Engineers is very important as “the collaboration will enable home grown Nigerian Engineers to work for the government and for the success of Nigeria’s infrastructural development as embedded in the Renewed Hope Agenda.”

According to him “in every consultancy service that we need concerning the construction and maintenance road network, we will always request for the input, contribution and the expertise of your organisations”.

On the removal of the Federal Government funding from regulatory agencies like COREN, the Honourable Minister informed the delegation that the Ministry was working on the matter, explaining that it was indeed a government decision which was not directed at any particular agency.

Assuring on the strengthening of the existing partnership with the two bodies, he said further “I want to assure you that this Ministry will work for our common good. In fact, I want to stress that our door is open anytime for consultations.

Earlier in her remarks, the leader of the delegation and President of National Society of Engineers (NSE), Engr. Margaret Oguntala, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the appointment of Sen. Engr. David Umahi, noting that the effect is already being seen in the road sector.

She lauded the Honourable Minister’s immediate impact on the sector through the use of professionals as consultants which she described as long overdue. Engr. Oguntala also called on the management of the Ministry to avail itself of the recently developed engineering database for professional services, stating it would assist greatly in strengthening their partnership.

 In the delegation to the Ministry were Engr Margaret Oguntala, the President of NSE; Engr. Prof. Sadiq Abubakar, President of COREN; Engr. (Prof) Adisa Bello, Registrar (COREN);

Others are Engr. Joshua Egube, Engr. Valene Agberagba, Engr. Saidu Hassan, Engr. (Dr.) Halimed Adeniran, Barr. Tom Ebgele, Lawan Abdo Mariri, and Andrew Francis Onyibo.

Feb

13

2024

FG TO STRENGTHEN OPERATIONAL MODEL OF HIGHWAY DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE TO ENSURE QUALITY DELIVERY AND EFFICIENT UTILIZATION OF ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE

In his efforts towards rejigging the operational model of the Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI), the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON has introduced parameters that will strengthen the quality delivery and management of road infrastructure under the Public Private Partnership model of road infrastructure development known as Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI) and ensure efficient utilization of the completed projects by road users.

The Honourable Minister gave this indication during a meeting with the Public Private Partnership unit of the Federal Ministry of Works and Messrs. Africa Plus Partners Nigeria Ltd (APPNL) concessionaires for  the Benin-Asaba and Lagos-Abeokuta road corridors in his office on 12th February 2024. In the meeting, which had in attendance the team of the PPP headed by Ugwu-Chima Nnennaya (Mrs.) and the team of APPNL lead by Mr. Dipo Lawore and Mr. K. V. Rao, there were discussions on the way forward for achieving a more effective operational model for the HDMI programme and more efficient contractual relations between the Federal Government and Concessionaires.

The meeting which dwelt on the review of the project parameters for the Benin-Asaba and Lagos-Abeokuta road corridors as negotiated in 2022 by Messrs. Africa Plus Partners Nigeria Ltd (APPNL) was necessitated by the heightened inflationary pressures, exchange rate concerns, reduced vehicular traffic on the highways occasioned by the increase in fuel pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).

Speaking on the need for quality delivery of road projects and efficiency in project negotiation, the Honourable Minister listed what he termed Renewed Hope model of the Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI) and said the parameters would be finetuned, agreed upon and adopted in all contractual relations between the Federal Government and concessionaires going forward. He highlighted the parameters to include:

a.    The design of the project to be in line with the specification of the Federal Ministry of Works and investor can only improve upon the design made by the Ministry.
b.    A reasonable construction period must be agreed upon.
c.    There shall be no variation on the project.
d.    100% of one carriage way must be completed before tolling by concessionaires.
e. The business plan must be in line with the  socio-economic dynamics.
f.    Terms of tolling of road projects must be in accordance with the Laws of the Federation, and standard contract conditions must be followed.
g.    Contingency and variation on Price (VOP) shall be utilized only by the express and written permission of the client.
h.    Bill of Quantities shall be verified and adopted in line with the prevailing market prices.
i.    Road count on traffic shall be carried out by the investor and where such data has been provided by the client, it is the duty of the investor to accept or verify and where the investor accepts, it shall be binding on all.
j.    It shall be the duty of the investor to sensitize the public on the toll programme in every project.
k.    The client shall have the right to terminate the job of the investor for failure to comply with the time of road project completion.
l.    Every road construction for highways must be in accordance with the highway standard prescribed by the Laws of the Federation.

In their separate responses, the team leader of the APPNL and the head of the PPP unit of the Federal Ministry pf Works assured the Honourable Minister of their commitment  to the innovative initiatives of the  Federal Ministry  of Works on road infrastructure and thanked  the Hon. Minister  for pointing  out that  there was a dire need to review not only the cost of the  concessioned project, but also the scope of the project to meet with the standard of road construction in accordance with the innovations introduced by the Ministry under the Renewed Hope administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GGFR. They expressed their commitment towards a robust negotiation on the project  review that would lead to a financial close so that work could commence without further delay. They promised to carry out further technical analysis on all the issues raised  in the meeting and re-present same to the Honourable Minister for consideration.

Jan

30

2024

WORKS, FINANCE MINISTERS UNDERTAKE INSPECTION OF ONGOING REHABILITATION OF THIRD MAINLAND BRIDGE 

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, and his counterpart, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Chief Wale Edun have undertaken the inspection of the ongoing rehabilitation of the Third Mainland bridge in Lagos.

While Inspecting the ongoing rehabilitation work this Tuesday, the Ministers took time to examine different aspects of the rehabilitation work, commending the contractor, Messrs CCECC for their good efforts so far.

Sen. Umahi particularly gave good attention to the ongoing  relaying of asphalt pavements of the bridge which commenced at the Owornshoki end of the 11.8kn bridge, noting the quality of work by the contractor, encouraging them to maintain the quality of work.

On the installation of the solar based street lights and the CCTV cameras on the 3rd mainland, Engr Umahi described solar lights as very useful and will be strategic for road users. He however told the contractor to ensure the right quality materials are utilised to ensure value for money.

In the inspection team of the two ministers were other senior government officials and the Contractor handling the project.

It would be recalled that the Ministers of Works and Finance had early in January this year visited the ongoing construction of the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road projects to  assess the status of the project

Jan

25

2024

PRESIDENT TINUBU'S ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE REVOLUTION  ON COURSE, DIRECTS  RELEASE  OF FUND TO TACKLE  CRITICAL  ROADS IN ALL THE  GEO-POLITICAL ZONES OF THE FEDERATION

The Hon. Minister of Works has reassured  Nigerians  that the Renewed Hope administration  of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, is on course  in it's  determination  to rejig the road infrastructure  which  is a key catalyst  for  the actualization  of the needed economic growth and development of  our nation.

The Hon Minister  gave this indication in Markurdi, Benue State on 25th  January 2024 during  his inspection  visit  to the Keffi- Akwanga- Lafia-Makurdi road reconstruction  project via Maraba, New karu, Asokoro, Ado, Goran road,  the  Lafia By-pass and the dualization of the Markurdi- Otukpo - 9th Mile Enugu road projects. 

He thanked  the President of Nigeria  for approving  the release  of funds  for the commencement  of work on the critical highways across  the six goe-political  zones, including  the Abuja- Kaduna- Zaria - Kano highway,  the Lagos- Ibadan expressway and the two by-pass roads at the 2nd Niger Bridge.

”So let me use this opportunity to also thank Mr. President. Just about three days ago, he approved that work should immediately commence in many sections; in Abuja,- Kaduna,-Zaria- Kano road. It's a very good and cheering news for me. We were having some problems with funding. But Mr. President has solved that problem and  directed the immediate release of funds so that the projects will continue. The same thing is  applicable to the Lagos Ibadan and the 2nd Niger Bridge two bypasses. Mr. President has directed the immediate release of money for the projects. As you see me, I am rejoicing like a newborn baby.”

Speaking during  the  inspection  visit  to the Markurdi  axis of the road, the Governor of  Benue  State, His Excellency, Fr. Hyacinth Alia called for support  to the administration  of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.He described the President's  national  development plan as purposeful and progressive and with the propensity  of  promoting  sustainable  and stable national  development. He  praised  the  new spirit of dedication  and  quality  service  delivery in the  Federal Ministry  of Works and expressed  hope that  Nigeria  would experience  a new dawn in  road infrastructure development  under the Renewed Hope administration.

”We are quite pleased that you are beginning the second phase of Abuja- Keffi - Lafia 9th  Mile Enugu road. I'm very excited to hear that you have already incorporated the prayers we presented to you"

"We thank Mr. President for his thoughtfulness and good heart for the common masses. He's someone who doesn't like to see people suffer. He spends sleepless nights to ensure that we get it right at this administration.  We remain quite indebted to him.”

The Honourable Minister  of Works undertook  a driving  distance  of about 446 Km from Abuja to Enugu  through  the bad spots of Otukpo- Nsukka- Uboloafor Enugu  road and that  afforded him the opportunity  to give policy  direction to the Engineers and contractors on site on the new initiatives on scopping  and construction and on the dimensions  of Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI). He also identified  areas  within the major junctions  of the  road project that require flyovers, especially  the axis after  Abacha Barracks in Abuja  and the Markurdi  axis of the  road project, where  road users  experience  heavy  traffic.

Jan

21

2024

Hon. Ministers of Works, Defence, and Chief of Army Staff meet on areas of Collaboration to Improve Internal Security, Focus on Road Infrastructure as an Important Predictor

...ACTIVITIES OF CONTRACTORS TO FOCUS IN THIS DIRECTION

As part of the strategic and holistic security roadmap of the Federal Government under His Excellency, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, the Hon. Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen. Engr Nweze David Umahi, CON had a closed door meeting with his counterpart, the Hon. Minister of Defence, His Excellency, Mohammed Badaru Abubarkar,CON, and the Chief of Army Staff
(COAS) Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja in his office at the Federal Ministry of Works, this 19th January 2024, and the focus was on strengthening collaborations towards improving the nation’s internal security through revolutionalizing road infrastructure development.

The Hon. Minister of Works praised the interactive meeting as a Renewed Hope initiative that would add value to the implementation of the security roadmap of the present administration. He commended the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for appointing men of proven professional capacities and passion for service delivery to tackle the security challenges facing our country, and expressed hope that with the interventions of Mr. President towards rejiging the nation’s road infrastructure, military operations across the nation would assume greater imptetus.

"I commend Mr. President very highly, and I thank members of the public who have also supported in different dimensions. Yes, we have discussed certain infrastructure as it concerns my ministry to enhance their performances, and our minds are working together. The main focus of Mr. President, when it comes to road infrastructure, is the interstate routes that are linked to security operations nationwide, the palliative jobs, and the roads that are linked to markets, industries, and factories etc. And so, this is one of the mandates that Mr. President has given to us. And so, we are going to hasten this mandate and to ensure that the desire of Mr. President, as far as road infrastructure is concerned, is achieved"

"Road is everything. If you improve the roads, you have improved security, agriculture, education, and commerce, and you have improved the happiness of people.  And this is just what Mr. President is doing. We have started to be in the field to repair over 320 roads that Mr. President directed us to do."

Speaking on behalf of the visiting team, the Chief of Army Staff said that the essence of the meeting was to discuss with the Hon. Minister of Works elements of national power support to the military field operations with a focus on the role of infrastructural upgrade in the enhancement of military operations across the country.

"We have discussed extensively, and we are glad that the Hon. Minister of Works is disposed to some of the suggestions that we have made on the need to focus on some critical roads that will impact positively on military operations across the country. And so, the Minister of Works has made some promises, and we look forward to seeing activities of contractors and other agents focus in this direction in the field, and the military will support them going forward. Overall, improved security is our objective, and we will continue to pursue that."

Jan

13

2024

Minister Of Works and His Finance Counterpart Jointly Inspect Abuja- Kaduna- Zaria- Kano Highway, Brainstorm with Julius Berger Nigeria Plc on Strategies and Milestones for Delivery of The Project Within a Record Time

In keeping with the Presidential innovations on inter-ministerial coordination, cooperation, and collaboration in the tackling of sectoral problems under the Renewed Hope administration of His Excellency, Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, the Hon. Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen.Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON and his counterpart, the Hon.  Minister of Finance & Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Chief Adebayo Olawale Edun, were on inspection visit to Abuja – Kaduna -Zaria-Kano Highway on 12th January 2024. 

The dual carriageway which has been   a source of concern to road users because of the many dilapidated spots and security challenges, was awarded to Julius Berger Plc but could not be completed because of security and funding challenges. But the administration of Mr. President views the road as very critical for the socio-economic advancement of the nation and is therefore committed to completing the project on a record time.

While brainstorming on strategies and milestones for fixing the road, the Hon. Minister of Works assured the contractors that funding would not be a problem going forward. "We have got a commitment from the Honourable Minister of Finance to make payment, and I am very sure if we pay Julius Berger Plc according to the commitment on funding, it will complete the job “

The Minister also said “we have issues of reviewing the contract sum, and we will sort that out. We sent our technical team to reexamine the sub grade, which will be the basis of our redesign, let me emphasis that this is the first project we are touring in this place, and Mr President in his Renewed Hope Agenda has expressed his deep concern on the completion of the project and he has directed that everything must be done to get the entire project completed”

On his part, the Hon. Minister of Finance assured of the unwavering commitment of the Federal Government in the timely funding of the project in line with the agreed milestones.  “Under the mandate of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we are both here on inspection to hear the commitment of the contractor handling the project and to support them, to as soon as possible complete this all-important reconstruction of the Abuja- Kaduna - Zaria - Kano Road.”

The finance minister described the works sector as one of the most strategic sectors that will add value to the economic development agenda of Mr. President and would always be given priority attention. "We want to urge the contractor to do more.Infrastructure is a critical priority of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. That is how we can get food prices down. Through transportation and easy transportation of agricultural products, we want to move freely across the country. To bring down the prices and inflation,we will be doing more on the funding. " 

On the inspection team includes directors from both Ministry of Works and Finance, Managing Director Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Engr Dr Lars Richter who conducted the two ministers round the projects and several other stakeholders.

Jan

11

2024

MINISTER OF WORKS DIRECTS CONTRACTORS TO GO BACK TO SITE, SETS TIME FRAME FOR PROJECTS DELIVERY

The Honourable Minister of works His Excellency Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON has charged the contractors under the Federal Ministry of Works to brace themselves for the standard of work and delivery time frame required of every contractor under the Renewed Hope administration the President of Nigeria, His Excellency Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR.

The Hon Minister gave this charge in a meeting with the Directors of the Ministry and the contractors held at the Ministry's headquarters Mabushi-Abuja, this 11th day of January, 2024.

The Honourable Minister emphasized that going forward, contractors must take into account the plight of Nigerians and the Renewed Hope Initiatives on road infrastructure development in executing their projects. He maintained that the Ministry of Works means business and would not take excuses from contractors. He assured them that the Ministry would consider the review of contracts previously consumated in line with set parameters and prevailing economic situations, and that all generated certificates would be verified and paid accordingly, while urging them to ensure that all issues of contract variations were brought to the notice of the relevant departments of the Ministry. He thanked Mr. President for the prompt release of funds for palliatives works.

”The Bureau of Public Procurement has approved over 80% of requests for palliative projects. Those who indicated interest in the palliative project should please come to the Ministry to collect award letters and complete documentation. Mr. President has graciously released 50% of funds on palliative work, and so he wants to see action in all the 36 States and Abuja.”

The Honourable Minister used the opportunity to announce the re-organization of the supervision structure for the Special Projects across the nation and introduced a special mechanism for tracking of certificates generated by contractors and expressed hope that with the new initiative under the Renewed Hope agenda of Mr. President, each State of the Federation would record not less than 150km roads in the Federal roads network in the year 2024, in addition to the special road projects funded through different extra budgetary platforms.

4. Earlier in his remarks, the representative of the Permanent Secretary and Director Highway, Bridges and Design, Engr. Awosanya Onatuga, stated that the meeting of the Directors and contractors with the Honourable Minister was agenda setting for the year 2024, and the essence was to take the task of performance that would help them move the Works sub-sector forward in accordance with the innovative plans of Federal Government under Mr. President. He thanked the Honourable Minister for the relief given to road users toward the Xmas and New Year seasons. 

"We can say we did very well towards the end of last year. There were no adverse reports on any blockage, people sleeping on the road. Yes, we have not done so much; we are not where we are supposed to be, but with the spirit of the Hon Minister, the can-do spirit, and it's not slowing down, we are on the right track"
 

Jan

09

2024

Our Plan on Road Infrastructure Development is Holistic and Sub- Nationally All- Inclusive

This is the policy direction that drives the synergy between the Federal Ministry of Works and sub- national governments in tackling accumulated road infrastructure challenges across the nation.

The Hon. Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen. Engr Nweze David Umahi, CON is committed towards making all the States have a feel of the positive impact of the Renewed Hope administration of our dear President His Excellency, Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR on road infrastructure, which is a catalyst for the socio-economic development of progressive nations. This was disclosed during the visit of the Governor of Katsina State, H.E Dr. Dikko Umar Radda, in his office today, 9th January, 2024.

Although it was a closed-door meeting, the visit was not unconnected with the zeal of the Governor of Katsina State to tap into the innovative road infrastructure agenda of Mr. President in the Works sub-sector.

Dec

25

2023

Happiest Season's Greetings on this Christmas Day From H.E. Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, Hon. Minister of Works

1. It is with the deepest  pleasure that I express the happiest  season's greetings  of my family, the management  and staff  of the Federal Ministry  of Works on this  momentous occasion  of the 2023 Christmas celebration, shared  by Christians all over the world. We thank  God Almighty  for the grace and privilege to celebrate  this year's Christmas season and for the hope of sharing in the prospects  of a new year.

2. As we all know, Christmas  is celebrated  by the Christian  faithfuls to commemorate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ who came to redeem all mankind and also to share the significance of love, peace, and goodwill towards  all persons irrespective  of creeds, colours, or cultures. We are therefore  enjoined to use this  moment  and always to focus  our  thoughts and open our hearts towards  the promotion  of the best attitudes in  our public and private lives; let us emphasize  that which unites and strengthens our bonds and dreams  of achieving a prosperous nation  which God, through  the instrumentality of the Renewed Hope administration of the President  of Nigeria, His Excellency  Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR is anchoring  to the glory of His Holy Name. Mr. President’s administration is committed  to achieving a loving, prosperous, and united  nation. Road infrastructure is among  the critical sectors that are receiving  the priority  attention of Mr. President, and this  is hoped to assist  in fully  unlocking  the economic  potentials  of our dear nation and the well-being of all her inhabitants.

3. Let us, therefore, see this season as a moment  of reflection on the need for concerted efforts and renewed  vigor in our collective hope of building a nation  of boundless  possibilities. May God continue  to strengthen our confidence in the hope of  a better  future and grant us greater  years of Renewed  Hope accomplishments.  Merry Christmas, and please  accept the assurances  of the esteemed  regards  and best wishes  of my family, the management and staff  of the Federal Ministry of Works,  this season, and always.

H. E Sen. Engr. Nweze  David  Umahi, FNSE FNATE CON GGCEHF
Hon. Minister  of Works

Dec

17

2023

The Commitment of the Federal Ministry of Works under H.E Sen. Engr Nweze David Umahi, on Prompt Supervision and Quality Delivery of Projects is Yielding Fruits, Contractors Now Ready to Meet the Expectations of Road Users and Indeed Nigerians

The Works Minister, His Excellency Sen. Engr Nweze David Umah did not spare a moment upon arriving in Nigeria from Cotonou, Benin Republic where he chaired a Steering Committee on the construction of Lagos- Abidjan Highway Corridor Development Project on 15th December,2023, and he moved to pay unscheduled inspection visit to some ongoing Federal Road projects around Rivers State.

The action minister is particular on standard, design, and specification. He gives attention to every detail on the contract award, ensures that certificates generated are accounted for by the Ministry's Engineers, and that Resident Engineers, Controllers and Consultants are on the ground to monitor project details. Umahi works on weekends, day and night, and takes no excuse for an answer. His eyes are on the ball, making sure that the vision of Mr. President on the road infrastructure revolution under his Renewed Hope administration is achieved within a record time.

Sen. Umahi visited the following Federal Projects on 16th December 2023, upon arrival from Cotonou, and it was a marathon inspection that did put the contractors, the Ministry's Engineers and the consultants on their toes. The projects visited are:

1. Rehabilitation of Enugu to Port Harcourt Section 4: Aba to Port Harcourt at Km 204 to Km 206 by Messrs. CCECC and
2. RCC section of the East West Road between Eleme junction and Onne Port.

Very soon, Nigeria will see that the Renewed Hope administration of His Excellency, Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR is on a mission to restore the hope of Nigerians for a prosperous future we can all be proud of.

Pictures Speak. Pls share and be ready to be part of the supervision. It is your right. Contact us on our dedicated numbers to report any shoddy job or unnecessary inconveniences to road users by contractors.

Dec

12

2023

Nigeria LNG Commended for Commitment to The Completion of Bodo-bonny Federal Road In Rivers State And Interest To Connect To East West Road

The Hon. Minister  of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON has commended Nigeria  NLG Limited for its commitment to funding the completion of the Bodo-Bonny Federal road in Rivers State in line with the tripartite agreement with Federal Government and Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, and for indicating  interest  to connect the road to East West Road to maximize the economic potentials  of the area. The Hon Minister  made this commendation when the management  of Nigeria  NLG   Ltd led by its MD/ CEO, Dr Philip  Mshelbilla, visited him in his office at Federal  Ministry  of Works Headquarters, Mabushi Abuja on 11th December,2023. He further  commended  them for  putting  the interest  of Nigeria  first in their contractual  negotiations and for keying  into the innovations and ideals of the Renewed  Hope Administration of President Asiwaju  Bola Ahmed Tinubu,GCFR with respect  to quality, innovations, cost effectiveness  and timely completion  of  road projects embarked upon by Federal Government. 

"Thank you very much. When I see Nigerians that are standing for the country, I feel very excited because Nigeria is our only country. We can't mortgage the country; we can't sell the country.

I saw your letter with regard to requests by Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, the contractor, to increase the contract sum. And you and your board together  with your team vehemently stood against that.  That gave me some teeth to bite because I saw a commitment by all parties that this project will not increase beyond the augmented amount of 199,000,000,000. 

So, I want to commend you for that." 

The Hon. Minister enjoined Julius  Berger  to respect the spirit and letters  of the tripartite  agreement and go back to site, assuring  that Federal  Government  would   offer compassionate  considerations on the remaining  16% uncompleted  job without  necessarily expanding the contract envelope.

"I discovered by the letters of JB that they have abandoned the site, and that's against the contract they signed, even if they needed to leave the site, the general conditions of contract specify the procedures  for notices in such a circumstance.

Well, we have discussed with them and I said, we are going to look at the remaining 16% on a compassionate ground,   and see whether there is any merit, and  we can see if there is any money left in the contingency, but definitely will not expand the envelope.

Expanding the envelope means you are going back to your Board. Expanding the envelope means my going back to Federal Inland Revenue, going back to BPP, going back to Mr. President, going back to  Federal Executive Council. So it's a long journey, and that will not allow that project to be completed as planned".

Speaking  on behalf  of the management  of Nigeria NLG Ltd, the  MD/CEO reiterated the  vision of the company  in not only building  a globally competitive LNG  company but also in contributing  towards  building  a better  Nigeria by  delivering  quality  infrastructure through projects  such  as the Bobo-Bonny  road being  funded  by NLNG. He assured  that everything  possible  would  be done to complete  the road on time  as provided under the agreement bearing in mind the concerns of the contractor handling the project.

"With regards to  coming back to the Bonny Bodo road, we see two parts to it, the main road itself. We are really looking forward to that being completed on time. We have had commitments in the past from the contractor around its completion and we do understand that there are concerns around  what is happening  in the economy  now".

He thanked  the Hon. Minister  of Works for his commitment to road infrastructure  revolution  and expressed hope that the economy  of Nigeria  would  bounce back with the  manifest  determination  of President  Tinubu's administration  in fixing  the critical  infrastructure  for the growth of our economy. He assured the Hon. Minister of the  readiness  of the company  to partner  with  Federal  Government  always  in her developmental  efforts.

"We have indicated an interest to pursue the extension of that road from Bodo so that it connects to the East West Road. That way you then have a complete corridor of major roads connecting to East West Road, rather than ending in Bodo.

In summary, just to thank the Minister  again, your commitment to projects like this across the country  will indeed make a huge difference to the common man, to transportation of people, farmers who need to move their products".

Feb

27

2024

Works Minister Pledges Robust Engagement with COREN on Development of Engineering Practice

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. (Engr) Nweze David Umahi, CON, has pledged robust engagement with the Council for the Reregulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) on the development of engineering practice in Nigeria.

“It is our intention to work with COREN and all other engineering affiliates, we will like to work with you as we have so far carried you along very well incorporating into a number of our committees and you have responded positively”.

The Honourable Minister gave the pledge today when the leadership of COREN led by the President and Chairman of Council, Engr. Prof Sadiq Zubair Abubaker, paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

Sen. Umahi, who spoke to the delegation in the presence of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Yakubu Kofarmata, stressed the importance of partnering with the engineering body, noting that it has become expedient for COREN and other stakeholders to work for the development of the profession; especially the need to uphold professional ethics and excellence.

Emphasizing the role of COREN, he said “I do believe strongly that the engineering body is not doing what should be done; there is supposed to be action where professional ethics are breached.”

Continuing, he opined that “there should be punitive action taken that will help in promoting professional ethics and ultimately leading to promoting engineering service as in the case of other professions like Law.”

On the need for the regulators to upscale their impact on the practice, he stated that “If the engineering bodies should do their work of ensuring the discipline of our profession, then we can get a better practice, a better society. The people you fail to supervise today are going to be the ones to build the bridges we will use tomorrow; that is the danger if we don’t do our own part to ensure that the professional ethics are enforced,” the Minister submitted.

Earlier in his remarks, the President of COREN, Engr. Prof Sadiq Zubair Abubaker expressed his delight on how the Honourable Minister has in the last few months changed the narration in the critical sector of infrastructural development in the country. He reassured the Honourable Minister of continuing partnership with the Ministry in the interest of the development of the engineering practice in the country.

In the delegation of COREN were the Registrar of COREN, Engr. Prof. Adisa Bello; the Head of Finance and Accounts, Lawan Mariri. Others include Engr Ahmed Kutigi, and Engr. Teah Andrew Onyilo.

Feb

22

2024

Works Minister, Senate Committee on Finance Re-Affirm Commitment Towards Implementation of Tax Credit Scheme

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON and the Senate Committee on Finance have re-affirmed their commitment to continue with the implementation of the tax credit scheme as contained in Executive Order 07 issued by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.

This was the position taken this Thursday at the end of the interactive session between the Senate Committee on Finance; chaired by Senator Mohammed Sanni Musa, the Federal Ministry of Works and Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, (NSIA) on the funding of critical roads, NNPC Funding and Infrastructure Development & Refurbish Investment Tax Credit Policy Initiative.

The Honourable Minister who expressed the determination of the Tinubu administration to complete the designated road projects under the tax credit scheme, told the Committee members that “we have not initiated new projects, because the President has not granted permission to do that.”

Speaking further, Sen. Umahi noted that there was the challenge of inadequate funding especially the non-release of funds by NSIA as expected for the implementation of the scheme.

The Honourable Minister assured that the Ministry is up to the task of actualizing the objective of the scheme as he announced that starting from next March, the Ministry would begin publishing details about ongoing projects. He said, “I can assure you that from the month of March, we will be publishing in the dailies the cost of projects, progress made for that month and other necessary information.”

In his own remarks, the Senate Committee Chair on Finance, Senator Mohammed Sani Musa disclosed the support of the Committee for the scheme, stating that the objectives of the scheme were commendable.

While lauding the initiative and the need to sustain the scheme, he averred that the Senate was not against the continuous implementation of the scheme as contained in the presidential, He thus “appeal to NNPCL, the Federal Ministry of Works and the contractors handling the projects covered by the scheme to ensure those projects are completed.”

Commenting on the role of NSIA in the funding of the scheme, the Senate Chair remarked that “the Committee will recommend to the Senate to pause that initial agreement between the Ministry and NSIA; “so then NSIA can now concentrate more on other investments. Let them leave the issue of road projects because road projects is an emergency and requires emergency attention,” he affirmed.

Pledging the support of the Senate for the Federal Government initiative, Senator Musa, said “however you will be able to get the funding on the side of the Senate, appealing that “I want to appeal to the Federal Ministry of Works to seriously look at the issue of funding; on the side of the Senate I hope we will be able to do everything to get funding for the projects,” he reassured.

The Honourable Minister was accompanied to the interactive session by senior government officials from the Ministry.

Feb

20

2024

Federal Government and Cement Manufacturers Meet Over Escalating Price of Cement, Brainstorm on Challenges Facing Cement Manufacturing, Agree on a Price Range of N7,000- N8,000/ 50 Kg Bag

1.  The Federal Government has agreed with the cement manufacturers on the modalities to tackle the escalating price of cement in Nigeria. This was the outcome of the meeting of the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi GON the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, the cement manufacturers and the Cement Producers Association. The meeting held closed door at the office of the Honourable Minister of Works. Mabushi, Abuja, had in attendance, the representatives of Dangote Cement Plc, BUA Cement Plc, Larfage Africa Plc and Cement Producers Association.

2.  In their separate remarks, the Honourable Minister of Works said the meeting was aimed at addressing the concerns of Nigerians on the escalating cost of cement in Nigeria marked by the disparities between the ex-factory price and the market price of cement. He expressed hope that the meeting would proffer enduring solutions to the unabating increase in cement price.

3.  Also in her remarks, the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment said it was worrisome that the price of cement was surging despite her Ministry's regulatory policies and the Backward Integration Programme (BIP) introduced to manage cement price and development, and expressed surprise that the whole idea of the BIP on the management and development of cement manufacturing industry is not bearing the desired fruit.

4.  A communique was issued after the meeting and was read by the Honourable Minister of Works as contained in the appendix hereunder. The two Honourable Ministers also used the opportunity to re-assure Nigerians that the Renewed Hope Administration of His Excellency, President Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu, GCFR is committed to addressing the economic challenges facing the country and shall leave no stone unturned in addressing the escalating prices of commodities, including the price of cement in Nigeria.

5.  Confirming the communique as the true reflection of their deliberations, the spokespersons to the cement manufacturers and the Cement Producers Association thanked the two Honourable Ministers for their  sense of devotion to the  cause of national development and expressed their confidence  in the timely  intervention  of the Federal Government  to the  challenges facing cement manufacturing in Nigeria. The spokesperson of Dangote Cement Plc and GMD/CEO, Mr Arvind Pathak added, "the Honourable Ministers gave us a kind hearing, and we have agreed for a window of 30 days in which we re-assemble and see how best we can move on that."

The spokesperson of BUA Cement Plc and Group Executive Director, Mr. Kabiru Rabiu said. "And another thing that I need to also add is that BUA is committed to bringing an additional 6 million tons of cement in the next few weeks, and that will seriously dampen the pressure of supply in the market, and we will continue to commit to this engagement." The spokesperson to Lafarge Africa Plc and Commercial Director Mr. Gbenga Onimowo said " it was very timely, honestly, listening towards the challenges that we all face as manufacturers, I think we appreciate that, and we do look forward to the solutions coming, the support they're going to give within the next coming days."

The President of Cement Producers Association, Prince David Aweta, added. "I am actually here to advocate for the six other players to join in the industry because practically, we can feel that the operators in the cement industry at the moment are so few and that is why we are having this perennial problem of cement hikes particularly during dry seasons."

DETAILS OF THE COMMUNIQUE 

Meeting of Cement Manufacturers – Dangote Cement Plc, Bua Cement Plc, Larfarge Africa Plc & Cement Producers Association with the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade & Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite and the Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON Held at the Office of the Honourable Minister of Works, Mabushi, Abuja on Monday, 19th February, 2024

1. The meeting noted the challenges of the manufacturers like:
    a.    Cost of gas;
    b.    High import duty on spare parts;
    c.    Bad road network;
    d.    High foreign exchange; and
    e.    Smuggling of cement to neighbouring nations.

2.    The government noted the challenges and reacted as follows:
a.    Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to seek some remedies from Mr. President on cost of gas and import duties.

b.    Federal Ministry of Works to give more attention to fixing of the roads, especially around the locations of the manufacturers.

c.    On the issue of smuggling cement, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to deepen the already started engagement with the National Security Adviser on how to stop the smuggling.

3.     The cement manufacturers and the Government noted that the current high price of cement is abnormal in some locations nationwide.  Ideally, cement retail prices should not cost more than ₦7,000.00 to ₦8,000.00/ 50kg bag of cement.  Therefore, the three cement manufacturers: Dangote Cement Plc, BUA Cement Plc and Larfarge Africa Plc have agreed that cement cost will not be more than between ₦7,000.00 and ₦8,000.00/50kg bag depending on the location. 

4.    Going forward, Government advised cement manufacturers to set up a price monitoring mechanism to ensure compliance, and manufacturers have willingly accepted to do so and to sanction any of her distributors or retailers found wanting.

5.    Government expects the agreed price to drop after securing government's interventions on the challenges of the manufacturers on gas, import duty, smuggling, and better road network.

6.    The meeting agreed to reconvene in 30 days to review progress made.

Feb

18

2024

Umahi Gives Termination Notice to Contractor Handling a Section of Enugu-Port Harcourt Highway for Non-Performance

....Minister commends President Tinubu for funding highway rehabilitation, construction projects.

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, has directed that 14 days termination notice be issued to Messrs. China Civil Engineering Construction (CECC) which is handling the Abia Section of Enugu-Port Harcourt Highway currently undergoing rehabilitation for reason of non-performance.

The Honourable Minister gave the directive this Sunday when he inspected the progress of work at Ozuaku, after Imo bridge along Enugu- Port Harcourt expressway.

According to Sen. Umahi “I've just directed that they should issue them 14 days termination notice using all due process on construction. After 14 days, if they fail to do what we have asked them to do, then we will have to do the termination notice.”

 
Adding “We will no longer tolerate the situation where contractors will put blank ranks on site. And they will be escalating construction costs by delaying the completion of project date.”

Continuing, he said “and we have reached an agreement in Ministry of Works that in the coming weeks, all non-performing contracts using due process will be terminated and re-awarded.”, he disclosed.

The Honourable Minister explaining the reason why contractors should demonstrate commitment said, “We let them know the suffering of Nigerians. We are here to help them, and we will do everything to help them,” he stressed.

Sen. Umahi then observed that “the cost of non-completion of this project has a lot to do with contractors. Where contractors stay on projects over and over and be pretending, thereafter, they come to request for augmentation every year refusing to leave the site.”

He however assured that “we will force them out of site either on the terms of completion or on the terms of termination.This is what we are going to do.” Stressing the imperative for the Ministry to deliver quality and good highways to Nigerians, the Honourable Minister averred that “it is very important to appreciate all the efforts of Mr. President who has been providing funds for our road infrastructure projects; which is very, very good.”

Sen. Umahi added that despite over 3,000 road projects inherited by this administration, President Tinubu must be commended for providing huge resources for our road network stating, “so it's kudos to Mr. President and it shows that Mr. President is very, very sensitive to our road infrastructure needs. And so we must do everything to support the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr. President, irrespective or notwithstanding any blackmail,” he declared.

Meanwhile, the Honourable Minister has lauded Arab Contractors, the contractor carrying out the ongoing rehabilitation of work on the 56km Abia State section of the Enugu -Port Harcourt highway for quality of work done with words of encouragement.

He said “the moment a contractor is performing very well, then you are a friend and that's the bottom line,” he submitted.

In the same vein, the Honourable Minister has described as excellent the job performance of Messrs CGC Nig. Ltd handling Enugu State axis of the dual carriage after his inspection of the roads.

While commending the contractor, consultant and the Controller of Works for job quality, Sen. Umahi praised the contractor for the quality of work and equipment, while requesting that  the ongoing work on one section of the highway must be completed by middle of March as agreed.

Feb

16

2024

Implementation of Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit (Tax Credit) Scheme on Course

The Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen Engr Nweze David Umahi CON has restated the commitment of the Federal Government in the implementation of the Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit (Tax Credit) Scheme. The Honourable Minister made this clarification   in a Press briefing after a meeting he had with the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue, (FIRS) Mr. Zacch Adedeji, FCA and the Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, represented by the Chief Financial Officer, Umar Isa Ajiya in his office on 16th February 2024.

Speaking to Press men, the Hon. Minister said that the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR has not only said that the implementation of the Tax Credit Scheme should continue, including private, NNPC and NLNG, but has also approved the review of the projects under the Scheme due to inflation. The Minister said that the statement of the Chairman of FIRS that the project would be completed but would not be expanded was misconstrued by some media quarters as saying that the projects under the Scheme would be stopped.  He further reiterated that the Scheme is highly beneficial and that the implementation framework is encapsulated in the Executive  Order No. 007 of 2019 of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Part of their agreement was that " all the NNPC projects on road infrastructure as started, should not be expanded, but should continue to the tune of N2.59 trillion. It was also agreed at the beginning of this Executive Order, and it was very clear that the N2.59 trillion was not the total cost of the project. Sometimes it's about 40% funding, sometimes it's about 50% funding. So, ab initio, the cost of the project up to completion was not N2.59 trillion. Now, we have scoped the entire project and then put a review on it, and the funding gap is N2.7 trillion."

"We agreed that three of us would make a joint memo to Mr. President to suggest that the N2.7 trillion funding gap be channeled to the National Assembly for approval and then the method upon which we get the money."

While thanking the Chairman of FIRS and the GCEO NNPCL for their commitment to the Scheme, he noted some of the challenges they discussed such as the problem of methodology for programme implementation and their resolve to adopt a more robust approach to solve the problem. He also said that part of their resolution was that non-performing contracts shall be terminated.

 He said "contractors should go back to site and  we are going to unequivocally terminate contracts that are not performing in the coming weeks and this we  will do definitely and we are going to encourage even the local contractors especially those who can do concrete roads to come forward and register and we patronize them".

While commending  FIRS for the funding,  he further expressed, " We are happy that this NNPCL project will be completed, we have agreed  on the private Tax Credit and he has also given a blessing  that it should not be expanded  beyond  the  last seven projects that were initiated by the last administration and that we should go ahead to review  the likes of  Dangote,  BUA, MTN and then close it."

Feb

14

2024

FG Tasks Concessionaire on the Revitalization of Central Workshop Ijora Lagos for Optimal Delivery in its Mandate of Public Works

The concessionaire interested in investment in the rehabilitation and management of the Central Workshop Ijora, Lagos under Public Private Partnership has been tasked on the need to leverage on the private sector initiatives of the Renewed Hope administration of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR to invest on technologies that will promote best construction standards in Nigeria, bearing in mind the mandate of the Central Workshop which is essentially public works as provided by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission.

The Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr Nweze David Umahi CON stated this during a concession review meeting with the Public Private Partnership unit of the Federal Ministry of Works led by its head, Ugwu- Chima Nnennaya (Mrs) and Messrs. BETA Transport Nigeria Ltd led by its Director, Nana Fatima Paturel, dated 13th February 2024. He urged them to see the partnership as an opportunity to develop technologies that would help in the building and maintenance of the government's infrastructure, especially buildings, road construction, bridges, rail tracks, harbours, and aerodromes. 

He highlighted the importance of the Federal Government's approval for the concession of the Central Works Ijora, Lagos and expressed confidence that if fully rehabilitated and put into optimal use, it would create job opportunities and help in the training of Nigerian youths, artisans and craftsmen that would close the gap in the human capital formation needed to drive the construction and manufacturing industry.

Considering the report on the processes leading to the finalization of the concession agreement with Messrs BETA Transport Nigeria Ltd, the Honourable Minister expressed reservations over the strength of negotiation that gave rise to the financial close, and therefore constituted  a five- member committee to re- evaluate the negotiation  outcome and make appropriate  recommendations with a view to achieving  value for the federal government. The Committee  is made up of the following members:
1. Director Highway Construction  and Rehabilitation - Chairman 
2. Director Highway Panning &  Development - member
3. Director Engineering  Services 
4. Director  Legal  Services
5. Head Public Private Partnership  - Secretary 

Responding on behalf of the committee, the Chairman thanked the Hon. Minister for his sense of commitment to the cause of national development and for the  ethical standards he introduced  in the conduct  of government  businesses  in the Federal Ministry of Works and assured  him that the committee  would  deliver on a record  time in the assignment  given to them.

Jan

31

2024

WORKS MINISTER ALLAYS FEAR ABOUT THE STATE OF BRIDGES IN LAGOS, SAYS NO NEED TO WORRY

* Umahi orders relocation of those cooking under Carter bridge

The Honourable Minister of Works, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, has allayed the fear of road users in Lagos about the integrity of the Third Mainland bridge, Eko and Carter bridges, saying “there is no need to worry.”

Explaining the work to be done , he said “Some of the elements which are defective are going to be fixed. But there's nothing to worry about. We are going to reinstate those defective slabs with the new the design.”

Speaking to journalists Wednesday after the joint assessment tour of the three bridges in company of the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, the Minister explained that “over the years, after the construction of the bridge, there was no serious maintenance,” He therefore assured that the failure of the bridge would be addressed. “So, we are working on the problems about the bridges.”

On the state of the Lagos shoreline, Sen. Umahi stressed that the shore protection on the marina needs urgent attention, noting that the Lagos railway project, the blue line might be threatened if nothing is done to address the matter.

At the end of the exercise in Lagos, the Ministers who  agreed there was need for rehabilitation work to be carried out, noting that the impact created by the current of water under the bridges and on the shoreline need intervention.

On the ongoing rehabilitation of the third mainland bridges, the Minister revealed that some comprehensive works would be done especially in area of provision of street lights on and under the bridge and installation of CCTV. While praising the work being done by the Contractor, he assured that the bridge would be opened to road users soon.

On his part, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun commended the Minister of Works and his team of officials for their efforts at rehabilitating the roads and bridges as he described them as very important for economic development.

While answering questions from reporters, the Minister disclosed that the Federal Government was looking to raise revenue to finance infrastructure, pointing out that “what we are targeting and working towards is a 77% increase in internally generated revenue for the Federal Government. So that is where the funding particularly is going to come from”, he submitted.

Meanwhile, during the inspection tour, the Works Minister upon citing those cooking under the Carter bridge, ordered that security be mobilised to stop the menace, adding that they be relocated immediately to avoid any serious damage to the health of the bridge.

In continuation of the inspection of Federal road projects in Lagos, the two Ministers also visited the Lagos - Calabar coastal highway and met with the contractor to review progress work on the project. The project when completed is expected to go through the shoreline linking Lagos with Calabar .

In the inspection were senior government officials from the Ministry, officials of Julius Berger and some journalists.

Jan

27

2024

WORKS MINISTER DEBUNKS CLAIM OF FRAUDULENT PAYMENT OF FUNDS TO A MICTOFINANCE BANK, SAYS IT IS A DISTRACTION

* To work with Governors to certify job completion before payment to contractors

The Honourable Minister of Works Sen. Engr. Nweke David Umahi, CON, has debunked the claim that funds for construction of roads was fraudulently paid into a Microfinance Bank contrary to extant regulations.

According to the Honourable Minister, “Let me also use the opportunity to debunk something that is ongoing in the social media. I don't know what they call the group, Is it Tracta Budgit or something which claims they're monitoring the budget of federal government; said that we paid 8.7 billion to the microfinance bank.

Speaking to some journalists today in Rivers State during the inspection of  the Enugu-Port Harcourt  dual carriageway being reconstructed  by Arab Contractors  Ltd, Sen. Umahi disclosed that the organisation “went ahead and said, that the 8.7 billion were paid against a number of projects in Ekiti State, in Kaduna State, Kastina State and Borno State between June and September, 2023.

The Honourable Minister while debunking further the erroneous claim by Tracka Budgit stated that as at June 2023, “he was in the Senate. So, if they are correct, it means the contracts would have been awarded while I was still a Governor, so not a minister.”

Concerning the payments to a Microfinance bank, the Minister explained that as at July, “I was in the Senate Up to the 20th of August”. 

He, however explained concerning the payments to a Microfinance Bank that “when a contractor has done his or her work, the money becomes his money. He can say pay it to any bank of his choice."

Sen. David Umahi described as very mischievous the claim by the organisation stating that they should have investigated “whether the job was done, that is the only right they have. But they don't have the right to say where a contractor will say his money will be paid. 

He submitted therefore that “whether it's paid in microfinance bank or macrofinance bank, what is paramount to establish if the funds were rightly paid for good work done.”

The Honourable Minister averred that it was an attempt to distract his commitment to delivering on the Renewd Hope Agenda of President Tinubu for the road sector development in Nigeria.

“And so, it's just a distraction. And then, some of the bank contractors are using them to fight back. But I refuse to be distracted, he restated.

On his efforts to ensure quality delivery of road projects through partnership with the States, Sen. Umahi said “let me also say that in all the states, it's our policy that the state governors, through their appointed officials, must mark off any project, especially the emergency, palliative projects. 

According to him “when a contractor has completed a job, no matter how big it is, my advice is for the state governor to come to the site and look at it and then mark off the job before he gets to office for payment. 

He strongly affirmed that “Where this procedure is not done, I will not sign any generated certificate”.
 

Jan

24

2024

WORKS MINISTER, SEN UMAHI HARPS ON PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP IN BRIDGING THE GAP ON FINANCING OF NIGERIA'S ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE, MEETS GOVERNOR KEFAS OF TARABA STATE, ALHAJI ALIKO DANGOTE AND HON. NDUDI GODWIN ELUMELU

In keeping with the road infrastructure initiatives of the Renewed Hope administration of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, the Hon. Minister of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON has been engaging with concessionaires and other private sector organizations on the need for private sector investment on our road infrastructure as done in advanced economies of the world. This informed the closed door meeting the Hon. Minister of Works had with the Governor of Taraba State, His Excellency, Dr. Agbu Kefas, the founder and CEO of Dangote Group of Conglomerates, Alhaji Aliko Dangote GCON, and Hon. Ndudi Godwin Elumelu, former Minority Leader, Federal House of Representatives.

It would be recalled that the Hon. Minister of Works in his zeal to change the ugly narrative of road infrastructure in Nigeria had set up three committees to work on the contracts executed by some concessionaires with the Federal Ministry of Works with a view to reviewing the scope and cost implications of the projects they undertook to execute under the Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI). This private sector initiative will fastrack road infrastructure revolution and bring order, accountability, and profitable entrepreneurship to the operations, management, and maintenance of Federal Highways.

The Governor of Taraba who retired as a military professional was a one-time chairman Governing Board of Directors Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) before he became Governor. The founder and CEO Dangote Group is one of Africa's foremost captains of industry who have made ambitious investments in the development of infrastructure in Nigeria and he has shown manifest commitment in the transformation of Nigeria's infrastructure through long- term investment in strategic sectors of Nigeria's economy, including financial services, and infrastructure development.  Hon Ndudi G. Elumelu is a well-travelled politician and contemporary public administrator, and also a product of Harvard Business School, Boston.

It is hoped that investors, local and international, and other organized bodies would take advantage of the will power of the President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Renewed Hope administration and the private sector experience and professional capacities of the Hon. Minister of Works to invest in the over 35,000 Km of the national road network being managed by Federal Government of Nigeria as this road network carries more than 70% of the vehicular traffic, making it a critical infrastructure for the movement of goods and services across the nation. This initiative will trigger economic development, job creation, local content development and wealth creation for Nigerian population. Mr. President mean business with his efforts to prosper our country and make it the pride of the African continent. Your support is critical.
 

Jan

16

2024

ROAD  INFRASTRUCTURE REVOLUTION UNDER THE RENEWED HOPE ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU GCFR, WIN -WIN SITUATION FOR ALL STATES

- As Benue State Governor  visits the Hon. Minister of Works

Photo  speaks

The Renewed Hope administration of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR  has proven to be a grandmaster  of inclusive and impactful governance that embraces  the desires of the federating States. The federal government  under Mr. President  carries along all the  States   in her road infrastructure  development plans. Just recently, the President of Nigeria  released  funds  for the commencement  of nationwide  palliative interventions  on our road infrastructure in addition  to the  budgetary  and extra budgetary  funds provided for the execution of the 2024 road  projects.

The 36 State Governors have been working  progressively  with the APC led federal  government, notwithstanding party affiliations or ideological inclinations, to ensure that  roads of socio-economic  priority  in their  States are captured in the infrastructure roadmap of the Federal Ministry of Works.  

Today, 16th January 2024, the Governor of  Benue State, His Excellency, Fr. Hyacinth Alia visited  the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency  Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON  in his office. The meeting was obviously  not unconnected  with the desire of the Governor  of Benue State to change  the infrastructural  landscape  of Benue State through  tapping  into Mr. President’s Renewed  Hope  infrastructure  initiatives across  the  nation.

His Excellency Hyacinth  Alia is the second  Catholic Priest to be elected as Governor in the history of Nigeria. He emerged victorious in the Benue State Gubernatorial election held on March 18 , 2023, and on Monday, the 8th day of January 2024, the Supreme Court upheld his election and dismissed the appeal of Mr. Titus Uba of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), who was his rival on the 18th March, 2023 poll. He is proudly a member  of All Progressives Congress,APC.

Jan

13

2024

New Permanent Secretary Works Yakubu Kofarmata Assures of Innovation to Achieving Renewed Hope Agenda

The newly deployed Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Works has given assurance that subsequent new innovations in the Ministry shall be geared towards achieving Mr. President's Renewed Hope Agenda in infrastructural development, especially in road construction and rehabilitation for ease of doing business in all sector of the Nigerian Economy. He made this remark after signing and receiving the hand over notes in the Ministry. The new Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Works Mr. Yakubu Kofarmata, was extremely glad to be back to the Ministry, haven served preiviously in the Ministry as an Asst. Director.

He was Particularly delighted seeing a good number of female leaders and architects still present, adding that it was an indication that the Ministry of works is a place that can bring the needed change in the country.

Mr YAKUBU KOFARMATA said in his words “I come here as a brother, friend and colleague and so we have to work together to help the President as well as the Honorable Minister to achieve all that they have spelt out in their agenda”.

Kofarmata further expressed optimism that his leadership would be a new beginning that would bring about innovation for the Ministry and the Country at large.
 

Jan

09

2024

Honourable Minister of Works Inaugurates Committees to Fast- Track the Implementation of HDMI Programme, Tasks Concessionaires on Best Standard on Road Construction.

In keeping with the avowed commitment of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR towards road infrastructure revolution, the Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, has inaugurated three committees to fast-track the implementation of the Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI). The programme which is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement in the construction, operations and maintenance of highways, is designed in such a way and manner that the emergent concessionaires will recoup their investments through toll and non- toll revenues as may be negotiated.

Speaking during the event, the Honourable Minister of Works harped on the need for the committees to work effectively and concertedly bearing in mind the expectations of Nigerians, in terms of transparency, standard and efficiency in contract negotiations. He noted that contract with some concessionaires had been consummated but said that the current economic dynamics and the new policy direction of the present administration would require a review of the scope of work and cost implication. He charged the concessionaires to abide by the criteria set and the timeline for the projects.

"We own the design; you will own the cost of the project while we carry out verification on the cost of the projects; the idea is to scope the projects. We want to have a standard road infrastructure to toll. Our business is to ensure that your design conforms with the Ministry's standard of design, that is why we are making the Director of Roads and Bridges of the Ministry to be the Chairman of the committee on Scoping and Design. We don’t want to do just a patch on the road and give it to the public for you to toll. The public will resist. We want to have a standard road to toll".

He said “we have to provide alternative road because by law you cannot toll road if there is no alternative route to it. It is very important that every of the projects must have alternative routes.  The number of toll gates and toll stations will be determined by Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC). We also have to put CCTV Camera, Solar Light and Security on our roads. Whatever that will make our roads safer is very important to us. All these must be considered part of the business."

The three committees set up by the Hon. Minister for the actualization of the Federal Government’s HDMI programme are: Scoping and Design, Financial Due Diligence and Agreement Review.

While constituting the Due Diligence Committee, the Hon. Minister said “We must have a figure to begin to work with under Due Diligence committee, we want to hand over all these sites to people who are serious by the end of March 2024.  Enough of these meetings, enough of the bureaucracy “.

Sen. Umahi said of the Agreement committee, " I have given a template on how to review agreement and I think the legal department can do this on their own “.

He told the concessionaires of the consequence of not meeting up with the rules of engagement. “I must say that in case timelines were set and any company couldn't meet up with the timelines, we may not continue processing anything with that company."

Sen. Umahi further stated, “in all our biddings in 2024 going forward, every cost element must be disaggregated. The procurement law has set up profit for the contractors.  We will verify the cost in respect of concessionaires. We have to ensure that the cost you are putting will do the job. We don’t want you to engage and come back and say there is inflation after we engage you on the project. We have to ensure that concessionaires have all what it takes to do the job. The Ministry of Works and the concessionaires must ensure that we are on the same page so that the citizens will not suffer.  Patriotism demands that we must not allow the citizens to suffer. We have to be realistic and honest. We don’t have all the money as government to do these jobs.

The Hon. Minister however, expressed happiness for the progress made by 9 concessionaires in finalizing their designs and documentation to achieve  a financial  close  by the first  quarter  of 2024 and charged  them to diligently  work  with the Ministry's  committees for the final processes.

Earlier, speaking on behalf of the Permanent Secretary at the meeting, the Director Highways and Bridges, Engr. Awosanya Onatuga said the Directors and the concessionaires were ready to work concertedly to move HMDI project forward. He remarked, "the contract has been consummated but there are certain dynamics that will necessitate a review of the scope of work that will dovetail into the cost of each project, and the Hon. Minister is desirous to fast-track this process, so that the second phase can take off".

Jan

05

2024

FG to Tackle Road Challenges Headlong in 2024

The Federal Government has promised to address all obstacles hindering delivery of road projects in the country   to ensure actualization of the road projects to the benefit  of  Nigerians before the end of 2024.

Work Minister, David Umahi who made the promised during his meeting with Directors in Abuja on Thursday urged them to be on their toe in working to ensure that vision for sustainable road infrastructure development in the country by the President Bola Tinubu’s administration in line with Renewed Hope Agenda is achieved.

The Minister proposed a review of agreements, cost, geo-technical evaluation among others of some of the existing contracts with a view to addressing the bottlenecks that have delayed or hindered execution of road projects across the country in the past.

Speaking further on the road projects, he said Mr. President approved huge, large sum of money for the Ministry in the appropriation in order for the Ministry to deliver its mandate. "

" We’ve some supervisions work to be done on roads, the Directors and the Consultants must work together and any erring contractors that don’t keep to contract agreement would be penalized”.

According to him, “I won’t be able to go back to Mr. President and Federal Executive Council for re-scope of work and contract if the contractors deliberately delay the progress of road construction".

Reiterating his commitment to the welfare of the workers, Umahi said what matters most is how much of roads has been constructed or made motorable to ease the sufferings of Nigerians when it comes to mobility, adding that irrespective of position or social status, any worker who is found wanting in terms of performance risks being kept aside or outright replacement.

The Minister told directors that there is a difference between his ministry and other ministries, departments, and agencies, MDAs, is due to the fact that the Works Ministry is measured in terms of the how much and the impact of the roads constructed.

“The difference between us and other MDAs is that ours is what you can achieve in terms of roads, not speech. And our office is not the normal civil service office where you spend eight hours and close, at times you need to even work at weekend,” he assured that anyone who works would be appreciated.

Umahi appealed to directors to be God fearing in handling the assignment of the ministry, while disclosed that the President had made available the needed funds for execution of road contracts, but that there was need for review of the contract terms due to previous experiences.

The Minister tasked the directors and contractors on integrity, identifying bad construction method, poor supervision, substandard materials as the foremost challenges of road contract execution in Nigeria. “18 retired security personnel are to be engaged in supervision and monitoring for each of the six geopolitical zones of the country”, he said.

The representative of Permanent Secretary at the Meeting, Engr O.O. Awosanya earlier thanked the Honourable Minister for creating enabling environment for staff to function well through provision of incentives and welfare, said " Since I have been in the ministry this is the first time i will be seeing a minister so dedicated to staff welfare provisions".

Director Highways Southwest Engr Adedamola Kuti while responding to the minister’s remarks assured the Minister that both the staff and the consultants would work in synergy to deliver on the mandate of the Ministry.

Dec

21

2023

Minister of Works Sen Umahi Inaugurates Board of Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (Ferma) Charges Members to Brace Up to the Road Infrastructure Maintenance Challenges in Nigeria

The Honourable Minister of Works, His Excellency,  Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi CON has charged the newly inaugurated members of Governing Board of Federal Roads Maintenance Agency ( FERMA) to brace up to the challenges of road infrastructure maintenance facing the country and show unwavering commitment to the road  maintenance programmes of the Renewed Hope administration of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR The Hon. Minister gave this charge during the inauguration of the FERMA Governing Board at the Conference Room, Federal Ministry of Works, Headquarters. Mabushi, Abuja on 21st December 2023.

The Hon Minister thanked the President of Nigeria for appointing men of proven integrity and ability into the FERMA Board and for approving the 2023 Supplementary Budget which provides landmark interventions on the Federal roads. He said road infrastructure was critical to the socio-economic development of our nation noting that the critical sectors that drive economic growth rely greatly on road infrastructure development.

"Let me first congratulate the nominees of Mr. President to the FERMA board and to express my gratitude deeply to Mr. President who has found you worthy to do this job. We have a very critical situation with our roads all over the country. and for me, the number one thing Nigerians needed like yesterday is road. Road is everything. If we fix our roads today, we will bring down inflation in this country, because bad road is affecting every aspect of our economic activities. 

He maintained that the enhanced budgetary provision for road infrastructure under our dear President  shows  his commitment in changing  the narrative  of our road infrastructure. "This underscores the fact that Mr. President understands the plight of our people as far as our road infrastructure is concerned, he's doing everything within the budget and outside the budget to fix our roads. And I want to assure Nigerians on behalf of Mr. President that our hopes are renewed in tackling our road infrastructure decays.”

It would be recalled that by section 3 of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, (FERMA) Amendment Act 2007, the President had on 13th October, 2023 approved the appointment of the following members of the Governing Board of FERMA and they had been confirmed by the Senate: 

Engr. Dr. Chukwuemeka Chijioke Agbasi - Managing Director

Engr. lbi Terna Manasseh - Member

Dr. Kenneth Ugbala - Member

Sen. Timothy Aduda - Member

Babatunde Daramola - Member

Hon. Preye Oseke Member

Aminu Adamu Papa - Member

Engr. Abubakar Bappa - Member

ACM Shehu Mohammed - Member

Yusuf Lawal Othman – Member

Earlier the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Works, Mahmuda  Mamman described the newly appointed members of FERMA board as people of proven competence and experience and expressed hope that they would perform in their new assignment.

In his acceptance speech on behalf of the newly constituted board, the Managing Director of FERMA Engr.  Dr.  Chukwuemeka Chijioke Agbasi thanked the President for finding them worthy to be appointed as board members of FERMA and pledged to discharge their responsibilities with the fear of God and align to the policy of the Federal Minister of Works and also to the mandate of FERMA.

He expressed the commitment of FERMA towards making a visible difference on the road condition and the travel experience of commuters in the country.

Dec

16

2023

Farewell To a Rare Gem, Okwadike

Hon. Minister of Works, Sen. Umahi commiserates with the family, government and people of Anambra  State over the death of the former Governor  of Anambra State, Dr Ezeife.

I received with a deep sense of sympathy the sad news of the glorious exit of the former Governor of Anambra State and elder statesman of note ,His Excellency,  late Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife who journeyed to eternal  glory  on the 14th day of December,2023 at the of 85 years.

2. Late Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife   was an advocate of selfless leadership and crusader for the cause of justice and national integration.  He was unequivocal on his stand for an egalitarian nation where all Nigerians shall enjoy equal, just and fair treatment notwithstanding their natural, cultural or religious inclinations. He was a prominent voice on national conversations. The loss of this dear nationalist has no doubt created a deep vacuum in the hearts of his loved ones and, indeed, all who shared in the values of his ideals. I heartily convey my deepest condolences to his family, the government and people of Anambra State for the loss of this great iconic leader and national figure who left inspiring life and times   worthy of emulation. May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace, amen.

3. Please, accept the assurances of the compassionate considerations, esteemed regards and best wishes  of my family, the management  and staff of Federal Ministry of  Works.

H.E. Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, FNSE, FNATE, CON, GGCEHF
Hon. Minister of Works