By Harry Awurumibe
With the approval of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at its recent meeting in Abuja, Nigeria’s government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has concluded plans to build six motor parks or bus terminals across the six geo-political zones of the country.
According to Alhaji Sa’idu Ahmed Alkali, the Minister of Transportation, who spoke to State House Correspondents after the FEC meeting this August at the Presidential Villa Abuja said categorically that the planned ‘Modern Bus Terminals’ are to be sited in Kano city in Kano state to take care of the seven states in the North-West; Gombe, Gombe state for the six states of North-East and Lokoja, Kogi State for the North-Central zone.
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Others will be sited in Abeokuta, Ogun State, for the South-West; the commercial city of Onitsha, Anambra state, will host the proposed “state-of-the-art bus terminal” for the South-East zone while the town of Ewu in Esan Central Local Government Area of Edo state will host the motor park for the South-South zone respectively.
Alkali also revealed that each of the motor parks will cost ₦23.6 billion and a whopping total sum of ₦142,028,576,008.17 or (N142 billion plus) for the six bus terminals, and that will depend on the inflation rate between when the contract is awarded and when it will be executed.
This is even as by the time the terminals are ready, the cost might have gone up, and there will be room for contract variation as it is always the case in Nigeria and contract awards.
Although the federal government’s intention to embark on the construction of six “modern bus terminals” in the six geo-political zones of the vast country is a step in the right direction, the humongous amount of money earmarked to execute the project should rather be redirected in remodelling the existing bus terminals in the major cities and towns in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja to meet international standards like the bus terminals in other African countries such as Morocco, Egypt, South Africa, Kenya, and even Cote d’Ivoire.
As a widely travelled journalist, I make bold to say that bus terminals are a very important part of urbanisation and development. Bus terminals are major stations where passengers transfer between bus routes, and buses stop to pick up, drop off, and wait for their journeys.
These terminals facilitate efficient public transport by connecting different lines, including local and intercity services, and can also serve as a point of control for operations. They are larger than simple bus stops as they also offer amenities like waiting areas, ticketing facilities, parking, and public conveniences such as bathrooms and toilets.
For example, my experience during a recent trip to the Kingdom of Morocco to cover the 13th CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) which Nigeria’s Super Falcons won after a come-from-behind 3-2 defeat of hosts Morocco, although not my first time, showed that government at all levels can play key roles in the development of a robust road transport infrastructure to make the movement of people and goods seamless and cheap.
Yes, like Tinubu’s administration wants to do, the Moroccan government has been instrumental in developing its road transport infrastructure, which includes building
motor parks, as part of broader plans to enhance rural accessibility and economic development, it first made heavy investments in constructing and upgrading roads, rails, airports, sea ports, and other infrastructures to support each other.
Also, the government of Morocco demonstrated a commitment to improving national connectivity for all areas, supporting various modes of transport, including buses, trains, trams, and taxis, which are running simultaneously round the clock from Rabat to Casablanca, Fez, Agadir, Marrakech, Tangier, Agadir, Mohammédia, Oujda, Berkane, Kenitra, Mekmes, among others.
Another example is that Morocco boasts of extensive and rapidly developing transport infrastructure, focusing on a modern high-speed rail network, a vast highway system, and significant commercial port development, including the Tangier-Med superport.
Indeed, transportation in Morocco presents citizens with different options, including by Taxis and Shuttles, Bus Transportation, Mass Transportation Systems, Railways, Ferries, and Tramways.
In the area of air transport infrastructure, the country also has no fewer than 19 international and national airports and is expanding its road and rail networks to improve connectivity, particularly between major cities and to support its growing economy and tourism.
Key initiatives include the ongoing high-speed rail expansion and the National Ports Strategy, reflecting Morocco’s ambition to become a continental transport hub.
In fact, Morocco, not the so-called “Giant of Africa,” Nigeria with all the oil-wealth, is the only country in Africa with an operational high-speed train called Al Boraq,
runs from Rabat to Tangier and Casablanca, connecting these major cities with travel times to Casablanca being significantly reduced to the barest time possible.
There are also plans and construction underway for a second high-speed line that will link Rabat to the tourists city of Marrakech while the existing line is being expanded to connect Kenitra to Marrakech, significantly reducing travel times between key cities and reinforcing Morocco’s position as a key logistics hub.
Also, a planned high-speed line will also connect Rabat to Fes via Meknes, significantly cutting travel times between these cities even as the Al Boraq uses double-deck trains similar to the French TGV Duplex, which are some of the fastest trains in Africa. The high-speed trains are operated by the state-owned Office National des Chemins de Fer (ONCF).
Surprisingly, all these infrastructural developments are not costing the Moroccan government as much money as it costs to construct ordinary railway lines from Lagos to Ibadan.
On road transport, why can’t Nigeria borrow a leave from Morocco’s Highways Policy that has a well-developed national highway network with over 2,000 km of motorways, connecting major cities and industrial zones. Ongoing projects, like the Tiznit-Dakhla highway, are expanding this network to improve rural accessibility and regional connectivity.
Morocco’s road network consists of motorways, expressways, national, regional, and provincial roads.
Inter-city and intra-city transportation systems are running simultaneously and seamlessly in Morocco with passengers spoilt for choices of buses, cars just as trams complimented the the surface transportation network in the major cities of Morocco.
For nearly one month, I stayed in Casablanca it was so convenient for me to move around with taxis, buses, trains, and trams provided by Casabus and Casatramway, transport services company operated by Casablanca authorities.
Commuting from Medina to
Sidi Bernoussi, and areas within Al Baida community.
There is easy transport to the modern financial district of Centre Ville, the historic Old Medina with its souks, the beachfront district of La Corniche, and the residential area of Anfa known for luxury properties.
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Other notable locations include the architectural landmark of the Hassan II Mosque, the charming neighbourhood of Habous, and the upscale shopping and residential areas of Maârif.
In all, every city in Morocco has a well-developed transport system that works 24 hours a day and seven days a week as seamless inter-city and intra-city transportation have become part of the culture of the Maghreb country.
Ironically, no city in Nigeria has any resemblance of any big city in Africa not to talk of cities in other continents especially in Europe and North American countries of United States of America (USA) and Canada despite the humongous amount of money past and present leaders of Nigeria have spent in their so-called infrastructural projects.
Make no mistake, nobody is arguing that the federal government should not build “modern bus terminals” in the country but building one “modern bus terminal” in each of the six geo-political zones of Nigeria but the number is grossly inadequate for a country of over 220 million people.
This is even as the construction of a bus terminus at the cost of N23.6 billion per one is way
too costly for a mere bus terminus in the present day Nigeria where most citizens are going through hard times due to runaway inflation caused by the removal of petrol subsidy by President Tinubu in 2023.
Besides, what is the wisdom in building bus terminals for cities that have no effective bus transport system and good road networks despite the huge population the country has among the nations in Africa.
It is sad that in the neighbouring West African country Cote d’Ivoire, bus services are running on schedule in the capital Abidjan and many cities with the government-owned SOTRA network involved in travel within the same city rather than an inter-country or inter-city trip.
In fact, government constructed bus stops and routes are found within Abidjan, while from Abidjan to Grand-Bassam by bus via Treichvile Gare de Bassam are available and on time, too.
In contrast, a big city like the FCT, Abuja, has neither functional bus terminals nor bus, train or tram transport services that can be compared to what obtains in Morocco or Egypt despite the recent inauguration of the completed Mabushi Bus and Taxi Terminal, constructed by the FCT Minister Nyesom Ezenwo Wike-led Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
Instead of embark on the construction of six bus terminals in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria, the federal government should get its priorities right by channelling the fund for the construction of the “modern bus terminals” into the provision of several high-capacity buses for the cities to start a functional city bus transport services starting with the FCT.
This is the way to go.
AWURUMIBE is a Public Affairs Analyst
