The minister of aviation, Mr. Hadi Sirika, has said that the second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja will be completed before the present government winds down on May 29, 2023.
Sirika stated this yesterday in Abuja during an oversight visit to the airport by the joint committees of the senate and house of representatives led Mrs. Abiodun Olujimi and Mr. Nnolim Nnaji.
Sirika who conducted the lawmakers round the ongoing projects at the airport also said the project would be delivered within the next six months and maintained in the next one year if funding would be made available.
He said the contractor for the second runway, Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company, had been fully mobilised.
In his remarks, Nnaji stated that the runway when completed will be the longest in West Africa with 4.2 kilometers against the existing runway of 3.7 kilometers.
He stated that the completion of the runway will further expand the industry and attract more investors in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
“We have been expecting this construction to take off because am aware that for some years now we have been funding budget to accommodate for the second runway which is very important to this country, Abuja being the capital city d Nigeria with an aggressive infrastructural development, we feel that it is important to add another runway,” he said.
For her part, Olujimi said: “This runway has been pending for a very long time, it could be recalled that the airport had to be shut down because we had only one runway and it was bad.
She expressed optimism that with the mobilisation and adequate funding, the project would be delivered before the expiration of the present administration.
“It was the initiative of the minister to ensure that the second runway took effect and glad to see that the contractor has been mobilized on site and they are working. The Minister has assured that funding will be delivered before the expiration of this government and we believe that is going to be a great feat,” she said.
