President Bola Timubu’s government has revived road projects in the South‑East that were conceived during the colonial era but left unrealized for decades, Minister of Works Dave Umahi said on Sunday.
The intervention is part of President Tinubu’s infrastructure drive across the country.
Minister Umahi, a former Governor of Ebonyi State, on Saturday led a delegation of journalists and officials on an inspection tour of legacy projects in the state and highlighted the Calabar‑Ebonyi‑Benue Trans‑Saharan Superhighway as a strategic corridor linking the South‑East, South‑South and portions of the North‑Central region.
Director of Media and Publicity, Renewed Hope Ambassadors Tunde Rahman in a statement quoted Umahi as saying, “It is a colonial‑era dream long forgotten, but President Tinubu has revived it, and construction is now underway.”
According to the statement, Section One of the project, originally planned at 118 kilometres, has been extended to 123.6 kilometres and carries a contract sum of ₦45 billion.
Dualization work is under way, they said. Section Two—running from the Aboadi border through Benue and Kogi states to Nasarawa—has been awarded at a reported cost of ₦668 billion.
Minister Umahi said parts of the route had reached roughly 28% completion and that work had continued through the rainy season after the administration adopted concrete pavement technology first used when President Tinubu was a state Governor.
“The Trans‑Sahara Superhighway is not just a road; it is an investment corridor that will catalyze trade in agricultural produce,” he said, citing cassava, yams, cashews and palm oil.
The inspection team reviewed bridges and the concrete pavement on the Onueke section, and inspected the 1.3‑kilometre Ndi‑Egbe Bridge in Afikpo Local Government Area, a link to Ugep in Cross River State Tunde said in the statement.
The bridge is expected to be completed by December 2026.
Mr. Umahi also described an Onueke flyover—a ₦35 billion project intended to decongest the highway—as standing 90 metres high with 2.2‑kilometre approach roads on either side.
The delegation included the acting federal controller in Ebonyi State, Engr. Maxwell Okoh, and Mohammed Mustafa, project manager for Infiouest International Limited, the contractor on parts of the Calabar‑Abuja Trans‑Sahara scheme. Infiouest is also the contractor for the Section Two award, officials said.
Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi used the visit to praise the federal administration’s infrastructure program and to tout security gains in his state, saying no kidnappings have been reported since he took office.
He listed a range of state projects, from rural roads to primary‑health centres and water schemes.
The national media tour is organized by the Renewed Hope Ambassadors, a group aligned with President Tinubu and led by Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, in partnership with the presidential media team.
The delegation—led by Bayo Onanuga, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy and Sunday Dare, Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication will continue to Enugu, Abia, Anambra, and Imo States to review additional projects under the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
A major rally to endorse President Tinubu for a second term is scheduled in Abakaliki on Monday, the statement said.
Minister Umahi said Mr. Nwifuru would lead participants from Ebonyi and urged residents to “ignore the ranting of opposition politicians,” praising what he called an unprecedented record of delivery.
