The Minister of Works, David Umahi, on Friday conducted an inspection tour of the Ebonyi section of the ongoing legacy coastal highway project initiated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Umahi expressed satisfaction with the quality and pace of work on the strategic national infrastructure.
Speaking during the inspection, the minister described the project as one of the most significant road developments currently being undertaken by the administration in the South-East.
According to him, the project begins from Ndibe Beach in Afikpo Local Government Area of Ebonyi and runs through Afikpo, Amasiri and Onueke before connecting to Ukwuachi and linking with the old Enugu–Abakaliki through Mbeke Ishieke Road to the Ebonyi–Benue boundary.
Umahi disclosed that Section One of the road project covered about 125.5 kilometres with a contract sum of approximately ₦454 billion, noting that the Federal Government has already paid 30 per cent of the project cost.
He explained that construction would commence with three lanes while plans are underway to procure and construct the second carriageway.
“From the Ebonyi–Benue boundary, Section Two will continue to the Oweto Bridge, bypassing Kogi and connecting to Nasarawa State.
” The entire corridor will eventually link up to Abuja, creating a strategic transport route,” the minister said.
He further revealed that the overall legacy corridor is about 465 kilometres long, designed to connect seamlessly with other national road networks.
The minister also noted that the Fourth Legacy Project, which initially covered 439 kilometres, was recently extended by President Tinubu by an additional 330 kilometres from Bauchi through Gombe and into Borno State, bringing the total length of the corridor to about 750 kilometres.
Umahi stated that about 120 kilometres of the fourth legacy project ending in Gombe has already been awarded and construction work has commenced.
He commended the contractor handling the Ebonyi section, Infiuost, describing the company as competent and currently delivering satisfactory results, similar to the progress being recorded on the Abuja–Kano federal highway.
During the tour, the minister directed that a section of the road at Abomege be dualised one kilometre forward and one kilometre backward.
He said enumerators had been instructed to engage property owners in the affected area so that compensation payments could be completed by next Tuesday, allowing structures on the right-of-way to be removed.
Umahi added that about 11 kilometres of the dual carriageway had already been completed.
He also directed the contractor to establish an additional concrete plant at Onueke to accelerate construction, noting that by Monday work must commence simultaneously from two fronts — one from Onueke moving backward and another from Abomege once affected buildings were cleared.
The minister said the inspection team would also proceed to “Channel O” at Ndibe Beach to assess the work being handled by CGC, which he described as impressive.
