The House of Representatives has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request for a $516,333,007 foreign loan to support the construction of the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway project.
The approval was given on Tuesday during plenary, following the presentation of a report by the Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Aids, Loans, and Debt Management.
The loan, which will be sourced through a syndicated financing arrangement led by Deutsche Bank, is expected to fund Sections 1, 1A, and 1B of the project, covering about 120 kilometres of the proposed highway.
The Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway is a major infrastructure project spanning roughly 1,000 kilometres, designed to connect the North-West and South-West regions of the country. It is expected to pass through Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun, and Lagos States.
The financing package comes with a nine-year repayment period, including a grace period of up to three years. The interest rate is capped at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) SOFR plus 5.3 percent per annum.
As part of the arrangement, the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) will provide a partial risk guarantee for the project.
In addition, the Federal Government is expected to contribute ₦265.5 billion, which will go into land acquisition, compensation, and related infrastructure support.
According to the Presidency, the highway project is aimed at improving national connectivity and economic activity by linking key production zones to markets and ports. It is also expected to reduce travel time, lower logistics costs, improve road safety, and strengthen food distribution networks across the country.
The approval comes shortly after lawmakers also cleared a separate $347 million loan request for the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway project, as the federal government continues its push for large-scale infrastructure development across major corridors.
