President Bola Tinubu has flagged off the construction of the 125-kilometre Akwanga-Jos section of the Akwanga-Kaduna-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Biu-Maiduguri Superhighway and commissioned two major road projects in Nasarawa State.
The projects, which include the dualised Akwanga Township Road and an underpass constructed by the Nasarawa State Government, were inaugurated during a ceremony in Akwanga on Wednesday.
President Tinubu was represented at the event by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda.
The ceremony was attended by the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi; Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang; Gombe State Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya; members of the National Assembly, state government officials and traditional rulers.
Speaking at the event, Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule described the dualised Akwanga Township Road as one of the landmark projects of his administration, noting that it was completed without obtaining loans from financial institutions.
Sule said the project was funded through increased resources available to the state as a result of the Federal Government’s economic reforms under President Tinubu’s administration.
He added that residents and business owners affected by the road construction were fully compensated, which helped secure public support for the project.
In his remarks, President Tinubu commended Governor Sule for delivering infrastructure projects beyond the state capital, describing the development as evidence of effective governance.
The President said the road projects demonstrated collaboration between the Federal and Nasarawa State governments, adding that the infrastructure would improve connectivity between Abuja and Akwanga, as well as enhance links towards Makurdi through an interchange.
Tinubu also directed the Minister of Works and state governors to collaborate with the Surveyor General of the Federation to develop setback plans that would accommodate future road expansion.
He further urged contractors handling the projects to prioritise the training and employment of local youths.
The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, described the Akwanga-Jos road as Section One, Phase One of the wider Akwanga-Maiduguri Superhighway project under the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Umahi said the 125-kilometre road corridor cuts across Nasarawa, Kaduna and Plateau states and forms part of a 700-kilometre route connecting Akwanga, Jos, Bauchi, Gombe, Biu and Maiduguri.
He disclosed that construction work had commenced on the Gombe-Biu section, while other sections, including Jos-Bauchi, Bauchi-Gombe and Biu-Maiduguri, were at various stages of design and procurement.
The minister also revealed that President Tinubu had approved the immediate release of N111 billion for the construction of the first section of the Akwanga-Jos road.
According to Umahi, the Renewed Hope Legacy Road Projects are designed to improve national connectivity, stimulate economic activities and strengthen integration across the country.
He added that several other major road projects, including sections of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway and Trans-Saharan route, were either completed or ongoing.
Umahi noted that the North Central region currently has the highest number of federal road projects nationwide, with 35 major projects, five of which have already been completed.
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