FEDERAL GOVERNMENT APPROVED N57.34 BILLION FOR ROADS REHABILITATION IN NIGERIA

Jonathan

 The Federal Government on Wednesday gave nod to contracts worth N57.34 billion for the rehabilitation, construction and review of different roads across the federation.The Federal Executive Council (FEC) at its last meeting before the Yuletide approved the award of contract for the rehabilitation of the outstanding section of Onitsha-Enugu Expressway, Amansea-Enugu in Enugu State in favour of Messrs RCC Nigeria Limited in the sum of N24.243 billion with a completion period of 36 months.Briefing journalists after the weekly council meeting, Nurudeen Mohammed, the supervising minister of information, said there is a budgetary provision of N400 million in Ministry of Works 2014 appropriation and N11 billion under SURE-P 2014 appropriation which is adequate for the take-off of the project.The project is expected to generate employment for not less than 25 engineers, 100 skilled and 435 semi-skilled workers in the course of execution.Approval was also given for the award of contracts for the rehabilitation of Sokoto-Tambuwal-Jega-Birni Yauri-Kontagora-Makera Road in Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states and Vandeikya-Obudu Cattle Ranch in Benue and Cross River states.The projects upon completion will enhance socio-economic activities as they pass through rich agricultural lands in Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Benue and Cross Rivers and link Benue State to the famous Obudu Cattle Ranch, a major tourist destination in Nigeria.There is a budgetary provision of N1.8 billion in Ministry of Works 2014 appropriation for the projects and the balance of funds for the project will be provided for in the ministry’s subsequent budgets.Meanwhile, FEC on Wednesday also approved policy measures aimed at repositioning the nation’s cotton, textile, garment (CTG), and fashion sectors of the economy.

Olusegun Aganga, the minister of industry, trade and investment, said this when he also briefed State House correspondents.According to Aganga, the policy, which is part of the National Industry Revolution Plan (NIRP), covers the entire fashion value chain from cotton to designing.He said that there was no better time to intensify implementation of the NIRP than now in view of the huge pressure on the nation’s foreign reserves due to falling oil prices.“Globally, the CTG sector is a market of about $2.5 trillion, accounting for about 3.6 percent of the world’s economy.“In terms of export, it accounts for about $800 billion; direct employment, close to 60 million and of course indirect (employment) close to 300 million.“In Nigeria, the cotton and textile sector in the 60s and 80s was actually the second largest employer of labour after government, and was a critical sector of the economy.“But of course as you know, we have seen a decline over the last two, three decades due to a number of factors:“High cost of funding, high cost of energy, obsolete equipment and plants and machinery, quality and quantity of cotton, a lot of contamination, smuggling, counterfeiting and dumping.“These are all the issues that this new policy is here to address.“The policy measures cut across different sectors and is the most comprehensive plan we have put in place.”The minister explained that industrial infrastructure, including 15 integrated textile and garment parks, would be established in different parts of the country.He said the establishment of the parks, whose sites had been identified, would be based on a number of factors including nearness to raw materials and market, and the availability of support infrastructure.According to him, the policy also contains measures that will address the issues of power supply, financing, availability of pure cotton, and the availability of local market for cotton products.