Aso Villa Reads for Thurs. 08/10/2020
Every day, we bring you the best stories that the Media is reporting about the Government of Nigeria
President Muhammadu Buhari today presented the proposed 2021 budget to the National Assembly. Full speech HERE
Federal government Wednesday approved the sum of $3.02bn for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri eastern narrow gauge railway. Disclosing this the minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, said “The Federal Executive Council has approved the award of contracts for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri eastern narrow gauge railway, with new branch lines and trans-shipment facilities. The council also approved the construction of a new deep seaport in Bonny, under PPP and the construction of a railway industrial park in Port Harcourt. The railway line will be at the cost of $3,020,279,549. The industrial park, which is under PPP, at no cost to Federal Government, will cost $241,154,389.31. The Bonny deep seaport will cost $461,924,369, at no cost to the Federal Government. The Port Harcourt to Maiduguri narrow gauge railway will have new branch lines: from Port Harcourt to Bonny and from Port Harcourt to Owerri are new lines. There is another connecting narrow gauge to standard gauge at Kafanchan. There is a branch line from Gombe or before Maiduguri to Damaturu and Gashau.”[Vanguard]
In a push to decongest the Lagos ports, the Federal Government is perfecting arrangements for the Onitsha River Port to begin full operations in the first quarter of 2021. This is as the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) recently commenced a trial movement of containers from Onne to Onitsha River, and would in the next couple of weeks commence another trial movement of containers from Lagos to Onitsha River Port. Jibril Darda, acting general manager, corporate affairs, NIWA, who confirmed this to BusinessDay on Wednesday, said the authority recently carried out a test-run movement of laden containers from Onne Seaport to Onitsha River Port. Darda, who described the operation as the first phase of the test-run, said the operation would also involve the movement of export goods from Onitsha River to Onne Seaport. According to him, the second phase of the test-run would involve the movement of containers from Lagos seaports to Onitsha River Port as well as returning empty containers and export goods from Onitsha to Lagos Ports. Queen Uba, area manager, NIWA Area Office Onitsha, Anambra State, told newsmen in Onitsha that the authority has been making frantic efforts toward full operation of a port in the Southeast since George Moghalu assumed office as managing director of NIWA. She also disclosed that the commencement of the operation of the Onitsha River Port was being put on hold due to the ongoing concessioning process.
The Federal Government on Thursday urged members of the World Trade Organisation to certify the candidacy of former Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, for the job of director-general. The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mariam Katagum, made this call in a statement on Thursday, according to the News Agency of Nigeria. Katagum, who is also the Chairperson of the Okonjo-Iweala Campaign Team, described her as “the best choice for the job”. She commended the Economic Community of West African States and the European Union for backing the Nigerian candidate.[Punch]
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