Federal Govt Flags Off Privately Financed Benin–Asaba Superhighway

KAMORUDEEN YUSUF 

 

The Federal Government has officially launched the 125km Benin–Asaba Superhighway Project, fully financed by Africa Plus Partners under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. The dual-carriage, solar-lit highway in Edo State aims to boost economic growth and regional connectivity.

Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, described the project as a milestone in infrastructure financing, emphasizing that it does not rely on federal funds.

Minister of Works, David Umahi, highlighted its “cashless model” as a future development template. Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, representing President Tinubu, praised investor confidence in Nigeria’s economic future.

The project aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda, demonstrating the government’s strategy to bridge the infrastructure deficit through private-sector investment. Given Nigeria’s budgetary constraints, the PPP model is expected to be replicated nationwide, with tolled roads ensuring financial sustainability.

This tolling model is expected to generate the revenue needed to recover construction costs and ensure the sustainability of such projects, further demonstrating President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to Nigeria’s infrastructure transformation.