The dream of expanding economic activities in the northern Nigerian state of Kano, is nearing fruition, as the new multi-billion Naira Economic City, currently under construction is tipped for commissioning in December this year, by the Administration of Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
The City is being development under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement, between the Kano State Government, and a private firm- Brains and Hammers, and is situated at Dangwauro along Kano-Kaduna Expressway.
Afolabi Muhuyiddeen, field engineer of the private firm handling the project, confirmed this, during an inspection visit by Governor Ganduje, to the project site, in Kano.
“All things being equal the phase one of this project will take-off by December this year, 2019. And we are doing our best to make this a reality” Muhuyiddeen assured.
The Economic City is one of the high flying projects started by the administration of former governor Ibrahim Shekarau, which the Ganduje administration is pushing for completion because of tremendous value addition to the state’s economy.
Commenting after inspecting the project, Governor Ganduje, disclosed that his resolve to complete the project was borne out of his quest to re-assert the state, as one of leading economic Centre in the country.
“What we doing today is a march towards the realization of the promise I made when I was voted into office in 2015, that my administration would complete all abandoned projects by the previous regimes.
“Our resolve to complete this and other projects is because our strong believe that projects of this nature, if completed, would benefit the people in the area of job creation, as well as provision of comfortable avenue for economic activities.
“My administration is particularly determined to make Kano a global city that can compete with any other city in the world. To have full and better economic potentialities for the benefit of all” the governor said.
Governor Ganduje also urged the contractors to speed up the work for quick take off of the market, and commended the planned for provision of 24 hour electricity to the market, noting that that would go a long way in making the market to be of global standard.
Kano, according to the governor, is fast becoming emerging modern economic city, striving to bring back the past glory on the global economy.
The design of the economic city seen by BusinessDay, indicate that the city on completion would have Ten Thousands (10,000) shops in the first phase. 38 of world class warehouses, 280 Trailer Parks spaces, Inland Container Land (ICL) with 200 Trucks capacity spaces and 202 Trucks Parking Spaces among others.
It will also be housed to 43 Grain Silos in place, 4 filling stations, whereas 2 would be for Mega stations and the remaining 2 would be normal stations, there are spaces for large scale industries for processing leather, meat and other identified commodities, in a modern way.
Other facilities which the city will have are spaces for warehousing pharmaceutical products which will provided conducive environment for drug marketers, which governor Ganduje sees as bringing more succor to the federal government policy of selling drugs in regulated areas.
In the course of the inspection, the field engineer, Muhuyiddeen revealed that his company is in in touch with the leadership of Market Associations in the state, and they have expressed support for the new project.
Kano markets, whose activities have direct connection with the new emerging global economic city, “And they showed their readiness to come over to the new Economic City when it takes off, with passion,” he discloses.
Governor Ganduje also urged the contractors to speed up the work for quick take off of the long awaited market. He further commended the plan for providing 24 hour electricity to the market. Saying that, that would go a long way in making the market to be of global standard.
