BREAKING : President Tinubu Seeks Fresh $516m Loan

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

BREAKING : President Tinubu Seeks Fresh $516m Loan

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally requested Senate approval for a $516,333,007 external loan to finance key sections of the ambitious Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway project, a flagship infrastructure initiative aimed at boosting national connectivity.

The request was conveyed in a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and read during Thursday’s plenary session.

According to the President, the proposed funding will support the execution of Section 1, Phase 1a and 1b, covering about 120 kilometres of the planned 1,000km highway corridor linking Nigeria’s Northwest to the Southwest.

Tinubu explained that the highway will originate from Illela in Sokoto State and pass through Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, and Ogun states before terminating in Badagry, Lagos State—creating a strategic economic route connecting inland production zones to coastal trade hubs.

The financing arrangement, the President noted, is structured as a syndicated loan from Deutsche Bank, backed by a partial risk guarantee from the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit, an arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group.

He added that the Federal Government will provide counterpart funding of ₦265.54 billion to cover land acquisition, compensation, and other ancillary infrastructure tied to the project.

Details of the loan show a nine-year tenor, including a grace period of up to three years, with an interest rate capped at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) SOFR plus 5.3 percent annually.

Tinubu informed lawmakers that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) has already approved the financing structure and urged the Senate to incorporate the loan into Nigeria’s rolling borrowing plan.

The President emphasized that the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway is expected to significantly enhance North-South connectivity, improve road safety, and reduce logistics and transportation costs across the country. He added that the project would strengthen trade, boost food security, and promote national cohesion by linking agricultural production zones to markets and ports.

The design also includes provisions for future development, with the central median reserved for rail integration and utility corridors, positioning the route as a multi-modal transport backbone.

Following the presentation, Akpabio referred the request to the Senate Committee on Foreign and Local Debts for further legislative scrutiny, with a report expected within one week.

Speaking in support of the project, Senator Mohammed Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) described the highway as a long-awaited development, noting that it had been under consideration for over five decades.

Aliero said he had personally inspected ongoing work and expressed satisfaction with the progress, revealing that sections of the road are being constructed using both concrete and asphalt, alongside modern features such as solar-powered streetlights.

He projected that upon completion, travel time between Sokoto and Lagos could be reduced by more than 70 percent, cutting a typical 13-hour journey to about six hours.

The proposed loan forms part of the Tinubu administration’s broader strategy to leverage external financing for large-scale infrastructure projects considered critical to Nigeria’s economic growth and regional integration.