Nigeria’s Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has disclosed that the Abuja-Kaduna train service generates over three hundred million naira (₦300,000,000) for the country every single month.
Speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Hard Copy which was monitored by Africa Today News, New York, Amaechi revealed that his ministry is beginning to contribute to the nation’s economic growth unlike what it used to be before.
‘We make ₦300million per month from the Abuja-Kaduna train,’ the minister declared.
He added that ‘currently, we are running Lagos-Ibadan from the money we are making from Abuja-Kaduna rail service, at the end of the day, we pay back over ₦100million to the federal government.’
Read Also: Army Deploys 100 Female Soldiers To Secure Abuja-Kaduna
Amaechi who was formerly governor of Rivers State, further revealed that the government is planning to put about 16 trains on the Lagos-Ibadan rail line, stressing that this will increase revenue generation from that axis.
When questioned about the cost implications for developments experienced on the rail system, the minister said the country is capable of meeting its loan requirements.
Earlier in the year, Amaechi had stated that the Federal Government has borrowed about $2.5billion for the construction of a railway linking Lagos to Ibadan.
Speaking further about the debts accrued in the course of developing the rail transport system, the minister expressed confidence that “Nigeria has the capacity to pay back” adding that the nation has commenced repayments.
He disclosed that more developments are currently in the pipelines as far as the rail sector was concerned which will further increase the revenue generated by the ministry and as such aid the government in settling its debts.
According to Mr Amaechi, work on the Kano-Maradi line and Port Harcourt-Maiduguri rails are expected to commence by the end of January.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK