FCT: Wike earmarks N383.5bn for construction of 14 major roads

Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Minister, Nyesom Wike has earmarked the sum of N383.5billion of the 2025 statutory budget proposal for the construction of 14 major roads across the nation’s capital, Abuja.

He disclosed this while defending the budget separately before senate and House of Representatives committees on FCT, Wednesday.

President Bola Tinubu had formally presented the budget proposal in a letter addressed to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, urging the Senators to fast-track its passage to facilitate critical development projects within the FCT.

Wike listed the roads to be constructed to include full scope development of Arterial road N20 from Northern parkway to Outer Northern Expressway, extension of Inner Southern Expressway (ISEX) from Southern Parkway (S8/S9) to Ring Road II, full scope development of Kuje road from Airport Expressway to OSEX.

Others are construction of Northern parkway from Ring Road II to Ring Road III (6.2km), full scope development of Arterial Road N20 from Arterial road N5, rehabilitation of old Keffi road, full scope development of Arterial road N16 from Wuye district to Ring road 2.

The Minister said the amount will also be expanded on provision of access road to bus terminals in FCT, dualization and upgrading of Ushafa war college/ Army check point road and other Ancillary roads, construction of Pai-Gomni road in Kwali Area Council and dualization of Kuje – Gwagwalada road.

Regarding revenue projections, Wike said the appropriation bill has also taken into cognizance the estimated revenue accruing to the FCT through the federation account and recognises other in-house efforts to boost revenue generation capabilities in the territory.

He said the focus of the capital budget is mainly on completion of ongoing projects that have high impact on service delivery to the FCT residents.

Wike revealed that, “The revenues accruable to the FCT are categorised into distributable and non -distributable revenues.

“The distributable revenue refers to those revenue items, the expenditure of which are distributed across activities of the Secretariats, Departments and Agencies, while the non -distributable revenue refers to inflow of funds for dedicated purposes such as the China Exim Bank Loan, earnings from COVID -19, Sukuk loan which are not available for general expenditure”

The chairman senate committee on FCT, Ibrahim Bomai commended Nyesom Wike for revenue physical framework, saying it is the first time FCT is proposing to generate about 1.7 trillion.

According to him, “Out of the 1.7 trillion, 1.3 trillion is distributable revenue. That means this is revenue that has been generated from the services of the FCT. While 391 billion is loans and counterpart funding.

“So if you total the two, you have 1.7 trillion. This is the first time FCT is generating this type of money. And as I said earlier, out of the whole amount, about 84% of it is going to capital.

“And out of the 84%, substantially, almost 75% is going for completion of ongoing projects. There is no doubt this is a very good achievement. And considering the fact that budgets from other organizations, you discover that the capital is almost 50% and overhead just another 50%.

“What FCT is presenting is one of the best budgets so far. And before I allow the floor for questions, I would like also to note that the IGR proposed by FCT has greatly improved. The FCT is proposing 608 billion just IGR”

In a related development, the Senator Osita Izunaso, representing Imo West in the Senate, on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC), called on the minister to during his tenure build a world-class referral hospital in Abuja.

According to Izunaso: “The one we have was originally Children and Women Hospital that metamorphosed into National Hospital. It’s already outdated. I want you to leave to your legacy a world-class referral hospital in Abuja.”

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