President Bola Tinubu is accelerating the completion of major railway projects in Northern Nigeria, with the Kaduna–Kano Standard Gauge Railway scheduled for inauguration on December 3, 2026.
The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council spokesperson, Dele Alake, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
According to the statement, the 203-kilometre Kaduna–Zaria–Kano railway project, one of the administration’s legacy projects, is approximately 90 per cent complete.
Mr Alake said the 400-kilometre Kano–Katsina–Maradi railway project has also attained 70 per cent completion.
When President Tinubu assumed office in 2023, according to the statement, the Kano–Katsina–Maradi rail project was at barely 5 per cent, while Kaduna–Kano was less than 30 per cent complete.
“The projects demonstrate the administration’s commitment to expanding Nigeria’s railway infrastructure, improving regional connectivity and facilitating the movement of passengers and goods across the country and beyond.”
Continuous Abuja-Kano link
The Kaduna–Kano railway, an extension of the existing Abuja–Kaduna standard gauge line, will establish a continuous rail connection between Abuja, Kaduna, Zaria and Kano, strengthening transportation links across major commercial centres in Northern Nigeria.
The two rail projects were recently inspected on the directive of President Tinubu by a federal government team led by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Funso Adebiyi.
At the time, Mr Adebiyi expressed satisfaction with the quality of construction work, particularly the railway alignment, drainage infrastructure, embankment protection, stone pitching and soil stabilisation.
The inspection included a train test-run journey from Jaji in Kaduna State to Kano, allowing officials to assess the completed track infrastructure and passenger comfort.
In his statement, Mr Alake said the president has also directed that all outstanding land acquisition and compensation issues within Kaduna metropolis should be resolved immediately so that the railway corridor from Abuja to Kano will be completed.
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Mr Alake said the completed 190-kilometre Jaji–Kano section out of the entire 205-kilometre stretch of Kaduna–Kano rail project and the 250-kilometre Dawanu–Kano–Kazaure–Daura–Katsina section of the Kano–Maradi project will be inaugurated by December 3, 2026.
When operational, he said the Kaduna–Kano railway will improve passenger transportation, facilitate commercial activities and provide an alternative to road travel along one of Northern Nigeria’s busiest commercial corridors.
Similarly, he said the Kano–Katsina–Maradi railway, which has reached 70 per cent completion, is expected to strengthen cross-border transportation and trade between Nigeria and the neighbouring Niger Republic.
“In line with President Tinubu’s agenda, all ongoing infrastructure projects will be delivered in every part of the country as scheduled,” Mr Alake said.
