The Trans-Saharan highway project when completed would strengthen the strategic relations between Algeria and Nigeria and give the two countries an opportunity to examine means and ways to give new impetus to the two countries strong relations.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that the infrastructure, linking Algiers to Lagos over a distance of 4,600 km, will bring benefits certainly to Algeria and Nigeria, and also shows that Africa can achieve projects of that scale.
Onyeama told NAN that the project, remained just about 200 meters to be completed.
Onyeama who said he was on a three-day visit to Algeria at the invitation of his Algerian counterpart, Abdelkader Messahel on Jan. 19, said the which was aimed at strengthening the strategic relations between Algeria and Nigeria.
He said that the visit gave him an opportunity to assess the multifaceted co-operation and examine means and ways to give new impetus to the strong relations, in line with the directives of the Algerian and Nigerian Presidents.
“We discussed some very important infrastructure projects, which includes the transnational highway from Lagos to Algeria, of course, this will completely revolutionalise the economy especially transports in terms of goods accessing European market.
“It is just about 200 meter left from the Chad end. It is funded by Islamic Development Bank and African Development Bank, and it is in the process of being completed.
Onyeama said that the two ministers discussed the fibre optic network for communications from Algeria–Nigeria and Benin.
He said that two Foreign ministers discussed the trans Sahara gas pipeline project,
NAN reports that the proposed gas pipeline, is to be built through a partnership between the NNPC and Algeria’s Sonatrach.
It would stretch 1,037 km from Nigeria to the Niger border, 841 km from Niger to Algeria, 2,303 km across Algeria and 220 km from Algeria to Spain.
It has an estimated annual capacity of 30 billion cubic litres of natural gas.
It is expected to be operational from 2020.
The Federal Government had committed 400 million dollars for the commencement of the project, while an additional 450 million dollars was raised through Euro-bonds in 2014. (NAN)
