Tinubu seeks senate approval for $516.3m loan

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday requested the approval of the Senate for a $516,333,007 loan from Deutsche Bank to finance the execution of Sections 1, Phase 1a and 1b of the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway project.

In a letter read during plenary by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the President explained that the 1,000km flagship infrastructure project is designed to strengthen connectivity between Nigeria’s Northwest and Southwest regions.
The proposed highway will run from Illela in Sokoto State through Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, and Ogun States, before terminating in Badagry, Lagos State.
According to the letter, the requested facility will fund Sections 1, Phase 1a and 1b, covering about 120km of the entire 1,000km corridor.

Tinubu stated that the financing will be structured as a syndicated loan arranged through Deutsche Bank AG, backed by a partial risk guarantee from the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), the insurance arm of the Islamic Development Bank.

He also disclosed that the Federal Government will provide counterpart funding of ₦265,542,689,569 to cover land acquisition, compensation, and related infrastructure works.

The loan is expected to have a nine year tenor, including a grace period of up to three years, with an interest rate not exceeding the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) SOFR plus 5.3% per annum.

The President noted that the Federal Executive Council had already approved the financing arrangement and urged the Senate to incorporate the loan into the national borrowing plan.
He added that the project is expected to boost North–South connectivity, improve road safety, and significantly reduce logistics costs across the country. It is also projected to enhance trade, strengthen food security, and promote national integration by linking production areas to major markets and ports, while reserving the central median for future rail and utility infrastructure.

Following the reading of the letter, Senate President Godswill Akpabio referred the request to the Committee on Foreign and Local Debts, which is expected to report back within one week.
Meanwhile, Senator Mohammed Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) commended the project, describing it as a long-awaited development initiative that has been in planning for over five decades.

“This project has been on the ground for the last 55 years,” Aliero said, adding that he had inspected ongoing work and was impressed with its progress.
He noted that construction already includes concrete and asphalt roadworks, alongside solar-powered streetlights.

Aliero further estimated that once completed, the highway could reduce travel time between Sokoto and Lagos by more than 70%, cutting the journey from about 13 hours to roughly six hours.
He urged the Senate to give the request swift approval once the committee submits its report.