Mr Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing has reiterated the Federal Government’s commitment to complete the abandoned 26 kilometer Kano Western-byepass project before the end of 2018.
The Minister, who was represented by the Director Federal Highways, North West zone, Busari Sikirullah said this on Wednesday when he inspected the project.
According to the Minister, the project which was awarded in 2006 was neglected until the coming of the present administration of President Muhammad Buhari who re-awarded the contract.
He added that the aim of their visit to Kano was to assess the level and quality of the work.
He said that when completed, the road would access to Jigawa, Borno, Bauchi and Katsina States.
Fashola noted that the road would also contribute so much to the development of the state and the country’s economy, Kano been sub-Saharan centre of commerce.
The Minister said, “the project was neglected due to lack of proper funding, but now President Muhammad Buhari has released huge amount of money to speed the completion of the ring road.
“The contract is now awarded at the cost of N22.7 billion which is higher than the previous amount, therefore, we will make sure that it is completed on time”.
Fashola called on the contractor handling the ring road project to do everything possible to ensure its completion, so as to reduce congestion within the city.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the ring road would pass through three Local Governments, Kumbotso, Ungoggo and Dawakin Tofa, with four bridges linking the areas.
The Minister had also inspected the ongoing construction of 80 housing units under Federal Housing Programme, and the dualisation project of Kano-Maiduguri and Kano-Katsina roads.
Speaking on the projects, the Chairman, Kano State Chapter of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Rabiu Haruna commended the federal government for its commitment to complete the road.
He said that the quality of the work so far done was commendable, as it complied with the engineering rules and regulations. (NAN)
