In Kaduna, Tinubu, Uba Sani synergy advances Renewed Hope Agenda with delivery of legacy projects

“We are waiting to pay back Mr President because the good people of Kaduna appreciate his support and will continue to support him beyond 2027 so that Nigeria will continue to witness this unprecedented and uncommon infrastructural development,” Kaduna Commissioner, Ahmed Maiyaki

By Ayorinde Oluokun

Last Thursday, a group of journalists and social media influencers led by the media team of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu set out for an extensive inspection tour of major Federal Government infrastructure projects across the North-West geopolitical zone with Kaduna State as the first point of call. Aside the federal projects, the tour was also intended to see how increased allocations to the subnational governments from the federal purse as a result of reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu like the removal of fuel subsidy, foreign exchange reforms have benefitted the people at the grassroots.

In an interview with journalists, Bayo Onanuga the special adviser to the president on media and strategy who led the presidential team said the tour was aimed at ensuring accountability, verifying contractors’ adherence to specifications, and documenting progress for public awareness.

The tour, held in collaboration with the Renewed Hope Ambassadors, began with inspection of the ongoing construction of the Abuja–Kaduna-Kano super highway project for obvious reasons: It is the expressway that will take the presidential media team and the journalists to Kaduna State.

Tinubu’s administration has continued the execution of the project inherited from its predecessor with the added innovation of use of reinforced concrete pavement instead of the traditional asphalt for its construction. “This critical road corridor constitutes Section One of the ambitious Abuja–Kaduna–Kano Super Highway, a flagship infrastructure project of the Tinubu administration designed to enhance connectivity, improve road safety, and stimulate economic activities across northern Nigeria,” Onanuga said.

Concrete Technology In Use /1000 local Workers Engaged

Coincidentally, the Zuba (Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to Jere in (Kaduna State) which is the Section One of the expressway was being completed the same day journalists and the media team were inspecting the project. About 94 kilometres of the road has been completed earlier with the use of asphalt. The new contractor, Infiouest International in operation is deploying concrete technology to construct the remaining 240 kilometres under the current phase. Journalists on the tour not only rode on the road, but they also have the opportunity of seeing the machines being used for the concrete mix at work at two different stops along the expressway.

Engr. Chukwuma Kalu, Resident Engineer from the Federal Ministry of Works overseeing the project told journalists that 88 Kilometres of concrete pavement from Zuba in the FCT to Jere Local Government Area of Kaduna State have been completed. The journalists also saw the multitude of people working on the project as engineers, machine operators, labourers among others, thus confirming the economic impact of the project on the communities along the road.

Robert Turner, the Senior Project Manager at Infiouest International told journalists that over 1,000 local workers were engaged from the host communities for the project. According to him, while most of the sophisticated machines deployed were imported, Nigerians were trained to operate and maintain them: “The thousand workers I am referring to are Nigerians, from engineers, operators of our machines, down to labourers, who are all from Nigeria.”

Turner said the unique construction process of the expressway include recycling existing asphalt, laying a stabilised stone base, and applying reinforced steel with high-strength concrete rated at 40 megapascals. This, he said, will make the road to last without needing maintenance for years.

He also confirmed that the company has received support from the Federal Government to hasten the completion of the project. “In terms of security, we have support from the Office of the National Security Adviser, One Division of the Nigerian Army and the locals. We thank God; generally, we don’t have any major security threats because we have enjoyed strong community cooperation. With the completion of the Section 1, Turner said the target is to complete section 2 by November this year. “We work day and night. We are totally dedicated to completing it on time, and you are welcome to come and inspect it at night. My workers are working day and night putting six hundred to seven hundred meters of concrete pavement,” Turner explained.

Work Advances On Eastern/Western By

The ongoing construction of the Eastern Bypass, and Western Bypass designed to ease traffic congestion in Kaduna city also attracted attention of the journalists. Kaduna Commissioner for Information and Culture, Ahmed Maiyaki told journalists that the construction of the Western Bypass has been abandoned because of lack of funding for about 20 years despite its importance to traffic management in the city before the advent of the Tinubu’s administration.

With President Tinubu’s support, said the two critical road projects have been revived and expanded with additional infrastructure. As such, Maiyaki said work on the road has gained momentum with about 13 kilometres and two bridges left for completion of the Eastern bypass.

He added that the Western bypass will free Kaduna city from gridlock when completed. He also revealed that N9 billion advance payments has been made for the project. “At the end of this year, we should be able to talk about moving from Kakao Bridge down to the Kaduna area, to avoid all this gridlock,” Maiyaki stated.

Also, Federal Controller of Works in Kaduna, Loveday Ulagu told journalists that the Western Bypass spans 51 kilometres and as a dual carriageway, equivalent to 102 kilometres across both lanes.

According to him, about 19.97 kilometres have been completed on one carriageway, with overall progress at about 40 per cent. He added that though the contract for the project was awarded in 2021, the real construction by Dangote Group with Dantata & Sawoe Construction Company as contractor began in 2023 through the tax credit scheme.

He said the road is scheduled for completion in December 2026.

Historic 35km Gadar Gayan-Gwaraji-Maraban Kujama Road

From there, the journalists embarked on a long trip to see the 35-km asphaltic road linking Gadar Gayan through Gwaraji to Kujama Junction described as the longest single road project to be undertaken by Kaduna State government. The well-built road includes a 130-metre bridge over River Kaduna and stretches across Igabi, Kajuru and Chikun Local Government Areas of the state.

Maiyaki said the road is part of a broader infrastructure programme comprising 140 road projects covering 1,335 kilometres across the state undertaken by the Uba Sani administration in the past two years.

According to him, the road directly serves no fewer than 76 farming and rural communities and was designed to improve accessibility, enhance emergency response, ease movement for schoolchildren, and expand access to healthcare facilities, markets and other social services for residents along the corridor. The road connected farming communities in the three local government areas to markets, aggregation centres, processing facilities and urban consumption hubs.

The project also addressed long-standing unfair distribution of investment in infrastructure, particularly in Kajuru Local Government Area, which had not benefited from any major road, project for over 12 years.

Maiyaki attributed the capacity of the Kaduna government to embark on such projects across different sectors to increased allocations from the federal purse.

As part of its commitment to to inclusive and people-centred development, the Commissioner added that the Kaduna State Government had in the past three years made significant investments in the health sector, including the upgrade of primary health centres across the state and education.

For one, journalists on the tour saw the completed and now operational Bola Ahmed Tinubu Specialist Hospital, a 320‑bed tertiary health facility located in Millennium City, Kaduna. The construction of the hospital began in 2009 by former governor Namadi Namadi Sambo and work at the facility was at about 60 percent when Governor Sani took over the administration of the state in 2023.

However, the phase one of the hospital with dedicated facilities for women and children, a comprehensive oncology unit, a fully equipped Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and solar panels complemented by generator backup to ensure 24/7 power supply has now been completed by the Uba Sani administration. The Kaduna State Government attributed the ability of Governor Uba Sani to complete the project to increased allocation from the federal government.

Kaduna-Kano-Maradi Rail Line to boost Northern economy

On the rail projects, journalists were also assured that the Tinubu’s administration is working on completion of Kaduna-Kano-Maradi Rail Line by December 2027. When completed, the project is expected to link Abuja to Kano and extending to Maradi in Niger Republic.

The Project desk officer, Abdullahi Adamu Yakubu told journalists that 68 percent of the Kaduna – Kano section of the rail line has been completed and will be fully delivered in December 2026.

“The railway line will go through bridges. We have constructed three out of the six stations. The major station is in Kano, which will link to the one in Jigawa and Maradi. It is more of an international hub that will accommodate a capacity of 1,000 passengers,” Yakubu said. He listed the benefits of the rail project to include taking loads off the roads, and creation of jobs. When completed, he said the Kano station would become the largest railway station in Nigeria, combining both the Kaduna-Kano line and the Kano-Maradi corridor into a single, high-volume passenger and freight terminal.

With plans for establishment of inland dry port projects along the train routes, it is believed that when the train project is completed, Nigerian ports will become more attractive for use of importers from landlocked countries such as Niger Republic.

President Tinubu has also recently approved construction of adjacent roads to facilitate access to the rail line. “This is one important project that will help strengthen business activities. The station in Kano will connect to the Dala Dry Inland Port, which means goods from the Lagos Ocean can be cleared and transported to Dala Port for final clearance. This will further increase the lifespan of our roads because one of the challenges facing our roads is the heavy trucks using them,” Maiyaki told journalists.

“With the train, we will be able to move the goods directly to the Dry Port in Dala, Kano, to increase commerce and economic activities in this area. This is one of the most important projects undertaken by the government of President Tinubu,” he added.

Tudun Biri – Turning Adversity To Gain

The tour also included a visit to Tudun Biri, a community which grabbed the headlines over two years ago as a result of mistaken drone strike by the military. However, the Kaduna state Government and the Federal Government have synergized to turn that adversity to gain for the community with delivery of life-changing infrastructure projects. That synergy has resulted in delivery of 133 housing units, a school, mosque, church, health centre, boreholes and new road infrastructure in the community.

Maiyaki said while the Federal Government constructed the housing units, the Kaduna State Government built essential infrastructure, including a six- kilometre road and a solar panel lighting system in the community.

He added that the Kaduna State Government also established a Level 2 health facility to provide medical services as well as a skills acquisition centre for youth development among other initiatives.

Another project visited by journalist is the Balarabe Musa Skill Acquisition Institute commissioned by President Tinubu in 2025 to tackle youth unemployment and insecurity. According to Maiyaki, Governor Sani’s administration has built similar sill centre across the three senatorial zones with capacity to train 32,000 youths in practical skills. Training is already ongoing at the facilities to empower youths to be self-employed and eradicate poverty.  

Kaduna Grateful To Tinubu For Legacy Projects

He also noted that President Tinubu recently approved construction of Mando roundabout to Birnin Gwari, a 105km artery that passed through the train station. “Let me use this opportunity to thank Mr President because the road we are standing on, which leads to Birnin Gwari, had been abandoned for over two decades. However, Mr President recently granted approval for the construction from Mando roundabout to Birnin Gwari, which is about 105km. It is a very important project for Kaduna State.

“We must equally acknowledge that the FEC [Federal Executive Council] also approved the construction of the light rail project for Kaduna State. These legacy projects were approved for three states comprising Lagos, Kaduna and Kano. Two of the states are from the North. It is a project that will gulp about N1 trillion,” the commissioner said.

He noted that the projects are proofs that the claim that the Tinubu administration has abandoned the North is untrue: “So, for anybody to claim that the current administration of President Tinubu has abandoned the North is not true. We must thank Mr President for these legacy projects that will live for our future generations to see.

He identified other projects approved for Kaduna by President Tinubu to include a solar power project to take the National Defence Academy (NDA) and Ahmadu Bello University Zaria.

“Other states are getting one for a federal university, but Kaduna received them for ABU and the NDA. This is something very important to acknowledge; we are waiting to pay back Mr President because the good people of Kaduna appreciate his support and will continue to support him beyond 2027 so that Nigeria will continue to witness this unprecedented and uncommon infrastructural development,” he said.