Sub-national governments and the private sector have been urged to take advantage of the constitutional amendment that removed the construction and operation of railway from the exclusive list to the concurrent list, to invest in rail infrastructure in the country.
The call was made by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, Engr Dr Freeborn Okhiria, on Tuesday, 16th July 2024 at the Endowed Professorial Chair on Transport and Logistics Guest Lecture of the School of Transport and Logistics of the Lagos State University.
Engr Okhiria delivered the Guest Lecture on the theme “From Exclusive Clause to Concurrent List: Potency for Sustainable Rail Infrastructure in Nigeria and the Lagos State Example” to an audience made up of top players in the transportation sector at the state and national levels, members of the academia and the general public at the Femi Gbajabiamila Conference Centre, main campus, Ojo.
Speaking on the prospects of States and private sector control of the railway infrastructure, Engr Okhiria said, “The prospects are quite high if they dont take on the projects at a go. The problem we often have is that when a government comes in, they want to start and complete a project in their tenure. But rail is not like that; it has to be done in bits. If you have a deliberate policy of doing say 20km every year and you add it to your budget, before you know it, if other governments come in and continue from where you stopped, in ten years, you would have about 200km railway.”
Citing the Lagos example, Engr Okhiria averred that Lagos has been at the forefront of rail development among states in the country. He praised the State Government for taking the initiative to commence work on the blue rail line with the NRC’s approval, even before the enactment of the new law in 2023.
He called on interested governments and bodies to reach out to the NRC to explore ways of investing in the sub-sector without compromising standards.
The Honourable Commissioner for Transport in Lagos State, Hon. Oluwaseun Osiyemi, who was a special guest at the event, said Lagos State has commenced partnership talks with its neighbouring Ogun State to link the red rail line through Agbado into the State in addition to the existing Mowe route.
This, he said, is to ease the movement of Lagos workers living in Ogun State and other commuters. He assured citizens that the government is working hard to complete the blue rail line in record time and urged Lagosians to be patient with the Sanwo-Olu administration.
He further added that the commitment of the State to holistically develop the transport sector birthed the lecture: “The Lagos State Government, in its vision to continue to develop the transport sector holistically, created an endowment known as the Lagos State Government Professorial Chair of Transport Studies.
“It is on this platform that we are all here to listen to the lecture,” he said while congratulating the Professorial Chair, Professor Bamidele Badejo.”
Earlier in her address, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Administration, Prof. Adenike Boyo said other states in Nigeria must emulate Lagos State by investing in rail transport to hasten economic prosperity in the country.
She said, “Using the Lagos experience, it is safe to say that empowering States to invest in rail infrastructure enhances the lives of citizens by reducing their travel time while also being a catalyst for the faster rate of development in the sector and the economy as a whole.”
The Endowed Professorial Chair, Prof. Bamidele Badejo, in his address, said the endowment of professorial chair in Transport Studies is the first of its kind in Transport Development and Sustainable Development in Africa. He noted that the lecture was aimed at creating an avenue through which accelerated rail infrastructure delivery can be achieved, especially by providing incursion for private sector involvement.
