President Bola Tinubu has sanctioned the immediate rollout of the National Construction and Household Support Programme, encompassing all geo-political zones in Nigeria.
According to an official statement, the programme aims to enhance agricultural productivity, stimulate the economy by creating opportunities in agriculture, manufacturing, and construction, and provide urgent economic relief for Nigerians.
The programme prioritizes the Sokoto-Badagry Highway, which will pass through Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun, and Lagos. Other critical infrastructure projects include the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Trans-Saharan Highway, connecting Enugu, Abakaliki, Ogoja, Benue, Kogi, Nasarawa, and Abuja.
President Tinubu has also approved full counterpart financing for the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Railway, traversing Rivers, Abia, Enugu, Benue, Nasarawa, Plateau, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe, and Borno, and for the Ibadan-Abuja segment of the Lagos-Kano Standard-Gauge Railway, which will pass through Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Kwara, Niger, Abuja, Kaduna, and Kano.
In a statement signed by Chief Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, the importance of the Sokoto-Badagry road project was emphasized, noting its strategic role in agricultural sustainability, benefiting numerous agricultural communities and key economic zones along its route.
Within the Sokoto-Badagry Highway corridor, there are 216 agricultural communities, 58 large and medium dams across six states, seven Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZs), 156 local government areas, 39 commercial cities and towns, and over one million hectares of arable land.
The programme also includes a one-off allocation of N10 billion to states and the Federal Capital Territory for bus procurement and the CNG uplift programme. Additionally, it provides a N50,000 uplift grant to 100,000 families per state for three months, support for labor unions and civil society organizations, and the deployment of N155 billion for purchasing and distributing assorted foodstuffs nationwide.
During the recent National Economic Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja, President Tinubu urged state governors to collaborate to meet citizens’ needs, reaffirming his commitment to providing necessary support to alleviate hardship. He also highlighted the urgency of boosting food production, underscoring the pivotal role of the Sokoto-Badagry Highway in forming Nigeria’s food belt and serving as a crucial artery for food export.
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