AUTHORITIES of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Wednesday cried out over its mounting debt profile put at N420 billion owed its contractors and what the Ministry of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) owes its other clients.
The minister, Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, who raised the alarm, while briefing State House Correspondents after Wednesday's Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, said the ministry was facing serious paucity of funds, capable of frustrating its projects delivery.
It, however, was not altogether a tale of lamentation as he highlighted the steps being taken by the FCTA to devise a robust business plan to ensure cash flow into the ministry's purse.
His words: "We are heavily indebted. Our responsibilities are many and multi-dimensional, and that is why we are trying to leverage on the private sector to do some private public partnership projects and programmes. We have informed council that we have accessed private sector investment to the tune of $4.6 billion since we came on board.
"In terms of indebtedness, over the years, we have a debt profile of N420 billion and I have craved the indulgence of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and she has agreed, and Council has noted our recommendation to float an FCT development fund. We can float bond after we have established a sound legal framework with the establishment of FCT revenue board."
The minister, who earlier briefed Council on the progress report of his ministry in 2012, said government planned to concession both airport and Kubwa roads, after which the concessionaire may wish to mount toll gates on the roads. According to him, the ministry is trying to get alternative sources of funding from bilateral and multilateral organisations.
"We plan to open up the city to facilitate businesses and good governance as well as reduce travel time in and around the city to a maximum of 30 minutes," he said.
Mohammed noted further that the ministry is working on an effective collaboration with the Nasarawa State government to expand and solve the traffic problems of the Nyanya/ Mararaba axis, adding that a good working relationship had been developed with the states that surround the FCT as part of measures to develop infrastructure.
He disclosed that the FCT has been brought under serious pressure as a result of influx of people. This has made the city, which was planned for less than one million people to accommodate more than five million people. "Both Nigerians and non Nigerians now gravitate to the FCT. We have developed a robust and credible business plan, a cash flow that will enable us, on a broader spectrum, make sure that we service our obligations.
"They are visible like the World Trade Centre that is nearing 75 per cent completion; Abuja Industrial Park, eight districts for the land swap to develop estate and use the land to pay them off. That would have saved the FCTA about N350 billion, which would be spent through the normal budgetary allocation."
According to the minister, " we have informed Council that we have a concession template for the existing corridor such as the airport road and the outer express way, requiring about N49 billion to complete so that at the end of the day, we will toll them and they would have been self-sustaining, rather than waiting for the Federal Government to provide money which would shift the goal post for the completion of the project.
The Guardian