By Joshua Tosin Ogunsakin 
The Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has said road projects being executed under President Bola Tinubu’s administration will promote regional economic growth and address long-standing infrastructure deficits across the country.
He said the roads were also designed to last for over 100 years, as the country shifts from asphalt to concrete road construction.
The minister spoke on Saturday while addressing journalists at the Amansea section of the Onitsha-Awka-Enugu Expressway after inspecting the ongoing work on the 107-kilometre road.
Umahi declared that it was no longer “business as usual” in the nation’s road construction sector, stressing that the projects were being built with durable concrete pavements to ensure longevity and promote regional economic growth, noting that the era of asphalt is gradually phasing out.
Umahi expressed satisfaction with the pace and quality of work being handled by Reynolds Construction Company, MTN Nigeria and their subcontractors.
He described the highway as one of the most significant and symbolic legacy projects of the Tinubu administration in the South-East.
The 107-kilometre expressway linking Enugu and Anambra states is being reconstructed under the Federal Government’s tax-credit scheme, with MTN Nigeria initially awarded the entire project at a cost of N202bn.
He said, “We came into the Enugu–Awka–Onitsha road, a very problematic road, but it has been addressed by the ingenuity of President Bola Tinubu and his plan for the South-East. Previous governments never worked on that road.
“This project is part of a broader push to address long-standing infrastructure deficits in the South-East region. Past governments never worked on that road, but it is only by the audacity of President Bola Tinubu that this abnormal situation is coming to a halt.
“First, I am very impressed with the work being carried out by RCC, which is using concrete to construct about 23km of the road. The first 20km have been completed, and we just have 13km remaining, all in concrete that will last up to the next 100 years. Then we have the MTN project, which covers a total of 107km.
“These projects are being built with durable concrete pavement and are aimed at fostering regional economic growth. The completed highways will feature reinforced concrete, solar-powered streetlights, CCTV surveillance, speed monitoring systems and security patrol vans.
“You see the design of the project is first binder, second binder and wearing course, and if you do the primer, everything is N94,000 per square metre. We are doing concrete roads which will last the next 100 years. If concrete can last 100 years, why should I do asphalt?
“Nobody guarantees asphalt to last more than 15 years in this country on any of our roads, but we are doing concrete on our roads under President Bola Tinubu and we guarantee it to last up to the next 100 years.
“We are moving from asphalt to concrete. You have seen the beauty of the coastal roads, what we are doing on the East-West Road, Trans-Sahara, Lagos-Calabar and Sokoto roads. Badagry is about to start.
“So my directive, effective from today, is that the 23km RCC/MTN tax-credit project should be executed with inner and outer shoulders, built up with laterite to the existing asphalt level.”
Umahi said sustained inspection of projects nationwide was to ensure Nigerians get value for taxpayers’ money.
Also speaking, the Federal Controller of Works in Anambra State, Augustine Opara, and his Enugu State counterpart, Ndem Smart, commended the minister for maintaining a cordial working relationship with contractors. They assured that the road project is targeted for completion by May 2026.