The 326-kilometere Itakpe- Ajaokuta -Warri rail line has been inaugurated for commercial operations.
The rail line was inaugurated by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday according to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina.
The inauguration was also with a directive from the President to the Ministry of Transportation to also ensure that all the nation’s ports were linked to the rail line while adding that ports of origin and destination to be linked to the rail network should include Apapa, Tin Can, Warri, Onne and Calabar Ports.
The statement titled ‘After 30 years in limbo, President Buhari inaugurated 326Km Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri rail line for commercial operation’ read in part:
“At the virtual opening of the rail line linking Itakpe to Warri, President Buhari directed the Federal Ministry of Transportation to link all the nation’s ports of origin and destination – Apapa, Tin Can, Warri, Onne, Calabar Ports – to the rail network in order to significantly improve overall transportation and economic capacities.
“The President declared that his administration recognised the importance of the railway mode of transportation as a vital backbone to support industrialisation and economic development.”
Buhari’s directive in the statement also highlighted the approval for the prioritisation of viable railway routes in the country.
He said, “Accordingly, I have approved the prioritisation of viable railway routes for either new rail lines or the reconstruction and rehabilitation of some, to achieve effective and efficient train services supporting the country’s trade and commerce.
President Buhari assured that the project would form a major link of South-South geopolitical zones of the country to the Northern zones and would before the end of his tenure.
He also urged stakeholders to buy into his vision towards reviving the fortunes of rail transport in Nigeria.
In a related development, Edo State governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, had at a public function urged the Federal Government to extend the Itakpe-Warri standard gauge to link Benin Industrial Park in Ologbo, Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of the state.
This according to them would help in accelerated development of the state.
