Seeks development of road infrastructure around the country
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Works, Ayogu Eze, on Monday warned that unless the Federal Government takes urgent measures to combat the deplorable state of the nation’s roads, the economy stood at risk of imminent collapse.
Speaking during a workshop on Attitudinal Change in the Management and Financing of Roads in Nigeria, Eze lamented that “Nigeria is nowhere to be found in terms of positioning in the number of quality road infrastructure within her territory.”
Stressing the importance of good roads as the bedrock to the development and growth of the economy, the Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen explained that if Nigeria must be one of the top 20 economies in the world and achieve its targeted Vision 2020, Nigeria’s road infrastructure must grow from its present 194,000km to about 300,000km
Onolememen further explained that if Nigeria must get its required goal of development, there must be a paradigm shift in the development of road infrastructure in the country.
“This will require huge investments by all the three tiers of government and the private sector,” he said.
According to the Minister of Works, the purpose of encouraging attitudinal change in policy formulation, management and funding of the road sector is to promote the development of good roads that can truly serve as the economic arteries of the nation.
