In a significant stride towards enhancing Nigeria’s railway infrastructure, the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) has successfully completed the laying of tracks on the Port Harcourt to Aba section of the Eastern Narrow Gauge Railway. John Zhao, an official of CCECC, made the announcement in a post published on the company’s official website on December 29, 2023.
“New year, new progress! The track laying from Port Harcourt to Aba on the Nigeria Eastern Narrow-Gauge Railway project has been completed by #CCECC,” Zhao wrote.
This development aligns with the recent statement by Fidet Okhiria, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), who had projected that the track laying on the Port Harcourt to Aba rail section would be completed in 15 days.
The commencement of the $3.2 billion Port Harcourt to Maiduguri narrow gauge railway reconstruction project was flagged off by former President Muhammed Buhari in March 2021. Rotimi Amaechi, the former Minister of Transportation, highlighted that the Port Harcourt to Maiduguri rail line aims to connect multiple states, including Rivers, Abia, Imo, Enugu, Ebonyi, Anambra, Benue, Nasarawa, Plateau, Kaduna, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe, and Borno, through a comprehensive rail network.
Despite the announcement of the reconstruction of the eastern rail line in April 2023, the federal government expressed concern over the slow pace of the project in September 2023. The eastern rail line reconstruction, undertaken as a narrow gauge rail, has sparked diverse opinions among stakeholders, with some advocating for a standard gauge rail instead.
The successful completion of the Port Harcourt to Aba section marks a significant milestone in the broader Eastern Narrow Gauge Railway project, reinforcing the commitment to modernizing Nigeria’s rail infrastructure.
