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| Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi |
The African Development Bank Group has approved a $70m loan for a road project in Ebonyi State.
The bank said in a statement on Friday that it would provide $40m, while its co-financier, the Africa Growing Together Fund, would contribute $30m.
It stated that the Islamic Development Bank was also providing Nigeria a loan of $80m, while the Ebonyi State Government would provide $17.60m, for a total project cost of $167.60m.
The bank funding would cover the rehabilitation and asphalting of a 51 km stretch between Nwezenvi and N’Doko, and part of the corridor between N’Doko and Ezzamgbo spanning 38.91 km, the bank stated.
It was expected to be completed in five years.
The AfDB stated that the project would aid the agricultural State of Ebonyi’s aspiration to develop special agro-industrial zones dedicated to processing of subsistence crops.
It would improve road safety and accessibility of farming communities and small-scale industrial areas.
Some 1,400 jobs would be created during the construction phase, the bank stated.
Once completed, the road network, which covered a total 177.81 km, was expected to serve also as an international link between Ebonyi and Nigeria’s eastern neighbour, Cameroon, in addition to connecting Ebonyi to Benue and Enugu.
“The project attests to the African Development Bank’s commitment to improve the quality of life of Africans by improving accessibility and road safety in its member countries,” it stated.
The bank said it began financing transport projects in Nigeria in 1972 and had since provided the equivalent of $630m in financing the sector, including a $69.9m facility through the private sector.
