The Federal Government through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement has advanced to concluding stage to redevelop and concession the abandoned Independence Building currently managed by Tafawa Balewa Square Management Board (TBSMB), Lagos.
Also, Chidi Izuwah, director-general, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), said this move was in line with the Presidency’s drive towards creating a private sector-led development economy and would also berth the establishment of the National Trade and International Business Centre.
Izuwah said this Wednesday on the sidelines after an inspection of the structure in Lagos.
The building is 25-storey structure situated in the Lagos Central Business District and occupies a land area of 8,100 square meters, with a large separate parking lot of 2,650 square meters and has been idle for 25 years.
He said: “This Independence Building is a national asset that was built 1961, and the ICRC has a mandate for pre-contract and post-contract compliance monitoring, and this building has not been yielding an economic value to the government and it is in strategic place, in the centre of Lagos.
“The intention of government is to concession this asset for it to become the national trade and international business centre that would drive value to Nigeria. So, we are here to understand the challenges of the transaction and what would be the regulatory requirements to reap its full potential.”
He further said, “The idea is to make sure that everything that belongs to Nigerians held in trust is put into the best use through partnering with the private sector, because his Excellency the President believes in a private sector-led economic growth. We are not doing this with government funding so we are going to select a competent private partner who has the technical and financial capacity.”
He disclosed that since announcement to bid, three contractors had been selected and they were in final stages of the selection the process. He assured that once approved, the firm who would manage it over a minimum of 20 years.
He added: “In terms of the concession of this type of structure and the amount of money involved, we would be looking at a minimum of 20-year concession for the private investor to make their money and also, government would be making revenue from concession fees instead of it lying idle.”
He however declined to mention the amounts to be invested, but assured of transparent communication once it was finalised.
But speaking on the National Trade and International Business Centre, Joseph Umar, director, commercial services, Tafawa Balewa Square Management Board, said, “The general idea for this is that the National Trade and International Business Centre would be first and foremost a command post for trade in Nigeria, and would also provide a meeting room for all trade related agencies.
“Also, we are setting up a national trade database where all trade related information for linkages would be available through an interactive portal.”
Also, transaction advisors to the project, Ross Oluyede, the acting managing director, Infrastructure Bank, said, “This is going to be developed through PPP and during that period, the government would earn a concession fee as opposed to what we have now and at the end it would be transferred back to the government as a functioning asset.”
