Minister of Works, Senator David Nweze Umahi, has reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to quality delivery of the ongoing reconstruction and dualization of the Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe Federal Road, saying the project will save lives, ease movement and strengthen economic integration across the Southeast when completed.
Umahi made the declaration during the weekend while inspecting the 65-kilometre Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe highway, linking communities across Ebonyi, Abia and Imo states. The project, executed under the Federal Government’s Tax Credit Scheme, is sponsored by Dangote Industries Limited and handled by Hi-Tech Construction.
The minister said the project was particularly challenging because of the mountainous terrain along the corridor, noting that one of the mountains at the project site was more than 60 metres high.
According to him, the mountain must “collapse” in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive to open the corridor and improve road safety in the Southeast. Umahi stressed that the road had consumed many lives in the past because of its difficult terrain, describing its rehabilitation as a major intervention capable of saving lives across the region.
He said the contractor had already restored more than 20 kilometres of the 65-kilometre road, adding that the quality of the rigid concrete pavement was, in his assessment, even better than that of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
Meanwhile, Umahi appealed to people of the Southeast to support the Tinubu administration and shun hate speech and sentiments, arguing that the region was benefiting from several federal projects and appointments.
He cited ongoing projects including the Enugu-Onitsha Highway, Enugu-Port Harcourt Road, Enugu-Abakaliki Road and other major infrastructure projects across the region.
In addition, the minister commended Dangote Industries Limited for sponsoring the road under the Tax Credit Scheme, saying the company had demonstrated commitment to balanced national development.
He also urged Southeast residents to show gratitude for federal interventions, insisting that the region should embrace development and inclusiveness rather than political hostility.
Speaking separately, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement for Southeast, Barrister Chioma Nweze, thanked President Tinubu and Umahi for what she described as unprecedented infrastructural development in the region.
Mrs Nweze said the ongoing road projects were opening up markets and connecting the Southeast to other parts of the country. She listed the Enugu-Onitsha, Enugu-Port Harcourt, Enugu-Abakaliki, Abakaliki-Trans-Sahara and Owerri-Onitsha corridors among projects contributing to regional development.
Also speaking, DG, Hi-Tech Construction, Christopher, explained that work was progressing on the mountainous section at chainage 70+530, where the contractor was preparing to remove the mountain and straighten the road. He attributed some delays to rainfall but disclosed that three excavators would be deployed to the site to accelerate the demolition and earthworks.
Similarly, the acting Controller of the Trans-Sahara Road Project in Ebonyi State, Mr Maxwell Oko, explained that the Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe highway was an important arterial route with several connecting roads leading to major parts of Ebonyi, Abia, Imo and Enugu States.
He said the project included sections for dualization and single carriageway reconstruction, adding that its completion would improve connectivity and movement of goods and people across the Southeast. It is believed that the completion of the project would mark a significant improvement in road transportation and safety in the region.
