The World Bank has revealed plans to disburse $500m as loan to enhance rural
road infrastructure and agricultural marketing in Nigeria. The financial institution
said the fund requested was contained in the final draft
of the Resettlement Policy Framework for the Nigeria Rural Access and
Agricultural Marketing Project Scale-UP (RAAMP-SU) under the Federal Ministry
of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD).
According to the bank, the loan will address the dire needs of 92 million people
who currently lack access to good roads, and improve climate resilience.
“Nigeria’s road network is relatively extensive, encompassing approximately
194,000 kilometres of roads. This includes 34,000 kilometres of federal roads,
30,000 kilometres of state roads, and 130,000 kilometres of registered rural
roads. The road density equates to about 0.21 kilometres of roads per square
kilometre.“Despite this relatively high road density, the rural accessibility index for Nigeria
(defined as the proportion of the rural population residing within 2 kilometres of
an all-weather road) stands at a mere 25.5 per cent, resulting in approximately 92
million rural inhabitants lacking connectivity.
“Rural access is particularly restricted in areas densely populated by the
economically disadvantaged. These factors underscore the imperative to expand
and enhance the rural road network, as well as conserve rural road and transport
assets.” The RAAMP-SU initiative is an extension of the earlier Rural Access and
Agricultural Marketing Project, supported by the World Bank and the French
Development Agency. The project is led by the Federal Department of Rural
Development within the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, with oversight by the
Federal Project Management Unit.
The international money lender noted that from the $600m estimated cost of the
RAAMP-SU project, the bank is expected to provide 83.33 percent of the required
funding to the tune of $500m. The commitment amount is 79 percent higher than
the initial World Bank commitment amount of $280m for the parent project.
The project will finance three key components, which are the Improvement of
Resilient Rural Access ($387m), Climate Resilient Asset Management ($158m),
and Institutional Strengthening and Project Management ($55m).
The policy document added, “While the eligibility for state participation under
RAAMP required the drafting and placement of Road Fund and Roads Agency bills
in the State house of assemblies, the new project would require the States to
have a fully functional Roads Fund and Roads Agency with appointed boards and
staff, and provision for administrative costs made in the state budget. In addition,
RARAs offer an opportunity to foster women’s representation in the transport
sector. “The RAAMP-SU’s funds will be allocated on a competitive basis between states
factoring in a refined socioeconomic selection matrix to increase rural access to
basic services and promote food security; activities readiness in terms of design;
and state’s demonstrated commitment in the projected infrastructure efficient
maintenance, including potential co-financing from their resources.”