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Lagos State benefited from major project approvals by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) running into N3.9 trillion, representing 111 per cent of the combined sum of N3.56trn approved for the South East, North West and North East with 18 states altogether in the last two years of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration, Daily Trust analysis has shown.
Findings revealed that during the period under review, FEC approved projects worth N5.97trn for the South West, N2.41trn for the South South, N407.49bn for the South East, N1.15trn for the North Central (including Abuja), N2.7trn for the North West and N403.98bn for the North East.
About N2.70trn was approved for legacy road projects that cut across regions, but without a breakdown of the contract sum specified, bringing the total sum of contracts the FEC awarded to about N15.79trn.
President Tinubu, who doubles as the FEC Chairman, hails from Lagos in the South West.
One of the major recent approvals for Lagos is the full rehabilitation, upgrade and modernisation of International Terminal One at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at a cost of N712bn.
The present administration has been accused of marginalising one section of the country in favour of the other. Some groups, especially the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), have at various times accused the president of taking more infrastructural development and appointments to the South than the North. Some have also noted that Lagos has been enjoying the president’s patronage at the expense of others.
But speaking with Weekend Trust yesterday, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, dismissed claims that President Tinubu’s administration is favouring Lagos and the South West in the distribution of capital projects and federal appointments. He maintained that the spread of infrastructure projects under the Renewed Hope Agenda has been equitable across the six geopolitical zones. He also rejected allegations of nepotism in federal appointments, insisting that the president has maintained a pan-Nigerian outlook in both policy and governance.
“The distribution of capital projects under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is being equitably implemented. No region is playing second fiddle. All six regions have a regional development commission to re-kickstart development efforts. While the coastal highway courses through the South, the Badagry-Sokoto Highway traverses the North. In addition, the Tinubu administration has secured funding for light rail projects in Kano and Kaduna states to the tune of N150 billion and N100 billion, respectively. The metroline projects, which include Lagos and Ogun states, are part of government efforts to develop Nigeria’s light rail infrastructure. The projects are expected to create over 250,000 jobs across various states”, he said.
Some analysts also pointed out that Lagos should get more projects as it generates the bulk of the money from taxes among others.
In August, the FEC approved N712.26bn for the full rehabilitation, upgrade, and modernisation of International Terminal One at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. The approval was part of the centrepiece of N900bn aviation infrastructure plan for the country.
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo (SAN), disclosed this while addressing newsmen after the FEC meeting. Keyamo said the project, awarded to China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), would strip the old terminal down to its structural core before rebuilding it with new mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.
“We have decided to strip it down to only the carcass and then do the complete M&E again,” Keyamo said, emphasising the administration’s departure from patchwork repairs towards comprehensive overhaul of key aviation facilities.
The FEC also approved the expansion of Terminal Two, including the construction of a new apron, access roads, bridges, and related works.
When combined with the Terminal One project, the total cost of all Lagos-related airport works amounted to N712.26bn, making it one of the most significant single investments in Nigeria’s aviation sector in recent years.
In a move to improve security at the Lagos airport, the council also approved N49.9bn perimeter fencing project. The 14.6-kilometre metal fence will feature an intrusion detection system, CCTV cameras, solar-powered floodlights, and a patrol road.
According to the minister, the security enhancements will include a modern command centre capable of detecting any movement near the fence in real-time.
The reconstruction of Carter Bridge in Lagos was also approved for N359bn, while the shoreline at Ebute‑Ero/Outer Marina in Lagos would be rebuilt for N176.495bn to arrest “severe coastal erosion threatening military and naval bases.”
The council equally approved N1.6trn for the construction of 55km Section 2 of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, extending from the Lekki deep seaport, where Section 1 ends, to the Ogun border.
In August, the FEC approved N13bn compensation on right-of-way acquisitions under the Lagos Industrial Transmission Project. Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, told journalists at the State House, Abuja, after the FEC meeting, that the measures aim to modernise ageing transmission infrastructure, improve supply reliability, and meet rising electricity demand nationwide. He said the project would be funded through a $238 million development loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The project, he said, was targeted at boosting supply to key industrial clusters in Lagos, which account for a large share of Nigeria’s manufacturing output.
Sokoto-Badagry expressway in Kebbi
In February 2024, the council approved N1.06trn for the construction of Section 1 of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway from Victoria Island to Eleko Village in the Lekki Peninsula. In May 2024, it approved the supply, installation and training of operators of the disabled aircraft recovery system at Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos at a cost of N4.2bn.
Aside from the projects based in Lagos, the council also approved constructions across other southwestern states. These include Abeokuta-Ajibo and Iyana Mosa roads in Ogun State, awarded at N10.89bn; Ijebu-Ibutita Ebe Road in Ogun, for N13bn; Ikorodu-Shagamu Road, for N27.59bn; Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (Phase 2, Section 1), with N195bn approval to undergo reconstruction under the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), and the remaining sections of Lagos-Ibadan Road awarded for N30bn.
