Very soon, Nigeria would return to the bond market to raise fresh N300 billion through its Series VII Sukuk, a sharia-compliant financial instrument to attract ethical investors.

Between 2017 and December 2023, the government raised over N1.09 trillion from six series of Sukuk and invested the funds in the construction or rehabilitation of roads across the country.

So far, according to the Director General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Ms. Patience Oniha, over 4,100 kilometres of roads and nine bridges across the six geopolitical zones and the Federal Capital Territory have been either constructed or rehabilitated.

Among these are the dualisation of the Lokoja-Abuja-Benin, Abaji-Lokoja, Kano-Maiduguri, Oyo-Ogbomosho and Benin-Shagamu roads, as well as the rehabilitation of the Enugu-Onitsha and Enugu-Port Harcourt roads, among others.

However, a trip through many Nigerian highways, especially those in the southern part of the country, shows that some of the roads are still highways to hell.

The state of Nigerian roads is pathetic, poorly maintained and riddled with potholes, leading to accidents and fatalities. Nigeria is said to have one of the highest road accident rates globally, with over 41,306 road deaths annually.

The government has struggled to finance the country’s road infrastructure deficit, estimated to be around N18 trillion.

It is estimated that Nigeria needs $3 trillion over 30 years to reverse the decline in road infrastructure.

Besides budgetary allocations, which are grossly inadequate, for instance, in 2025, the budgetary allocation for road construction and maintenance is a little over N1 trillion. There is also the question of effective utilisation of available resources.

It is no secret that the cost of either constructing or maintaining a kilometre of road in Nigeria is extremely high when compared to other African countries.

A report by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) based on an earlier study by the World Bank estimates the cost of constructing a kilometre of road at between N400 million and N1 billion.

In 2013, the Federal Government awarded the contract for the reconstruction of the 127-kilometre Lagos-Ibadan Expressway at N167 billion, which was equivalent to $1 billion at the time.

In the same year, a similar contract was awarded for the 1,028-kilometre Lagos-Abidjan road project. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which awarded the contract, estimated the project to cost between N167 billion and N240 billion.

The six-lane ECOWAS project is expected to connect five major cities in the region, namely Lagos, Nigeria; Cotonou, Benin Republic; Lome, Togo; Accra, Ghana; and Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

In other words, the number of kilometres to be covered by that project is eight times higher than Nigeria’s Lagos-Ibadan Expressway project. And the cost per kilometre is far lower than that of Nigeria.

At N240 billion projected maximum cost, the cost of the ECOWAS road project per kilometre is N234 million, while the six-lane Lagos-Ibadan Expressway contract awarded by the Federal Government at N167 billion costs N1.3 billion per kilometre.

Analysts believe that the utilisation of the N1.1 trillion raised through Sukuk bonds for road infrastructure in Nigeria, though it shows significant progress, raises questions about the overall effectiveness and efficient utilisation of borrowed funds.

Prof. Godwin Oyedokun of Lead City University said that to assess whether the funds have been judiciously utilised, there is a need to analyse the cost per kilometre for the roads constructed compared to similar projects in other regions.

He said the government should always be transparent by establishing clear criteria and benchmarks for project selection and execution, adding that regular audits and public reporting will enhance transparency.

“I expect that the government should always focus on projects that have the greatest impact on economic growth and accessibility, particularly in underserved regions,” he said.

He charged the DMO to implement a robust system for tracking the progress and impact of projects funded by Sukuk proceeds.