The federal government on Thursday launched its reviewed $2.3trillion National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP)(2020–2043).
Minister of state for budget and national planning Prince Clem Agba, who launched the document in Abuja, explained that the NIIM was developed to guide Nigeria’s infrastructure investment by adopting a coordinated approach to infrastructure development across all sectors, add value to the national economy and enhance private sector participation in infrastructure development.
The reviewed NIIMP launched by the federal government projects that Nigeria requires a total infrastructure investment of $2.3trillion over the next 21 years, which is about $150billion annually to finance infrastructure investment and close the country’s infrastructural gap.
Agba explained that the unwavering commitment of the federal government in addressing the problem of huge infrastructure gap in Nigeria led to the development of the NIIMP as a government blue print for building a world- class infrastructure required to grow the economy, enhance quality of life of the citizenry, create jobs and improve the nation’s global competitiveness.
He said, “The Master Plan emanated through an elaborate and inclusive process including the work of the Ministerial Steering Committee, Technical Working Groups and Business Support Group, which provided private sector perspective and expectations.”
Explaining the rationale for the review of the NIIMP, Agba said, “It is worthy to note that between 2014 to date when the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan was initially developed, a lot has happened, including some important progress towards improving the quality and stock of the nation’s infrastructure which was estimated to be between 20-25 percent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product in 2012.
“Several important reforms have been launched across the various spectrum of infrastructure in recent years.
“The macroeconomic fundamentals and landscape have changed significantly, making previous estimates, targets and assumptions largely unrealistic.
“Generally, taking account of Government efforts in infrastructure delivery over the years, as well as new developments within the domestic and global environments, necessitated the need for a review of the Master Plan in 2019.”
Commenting on the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari -led administration, he said, in the administration’s resolve to bridge the nation’s infrastructure gap in the wake of the COVID 19 pandemic, it floated a N15 trillion Infrastructure Corporation and also signed Executive order 7, which has informed right policy framework and created enough space for Public Private Partnership (PPP) in infrastructure development.
“In addition, some key infrastructure projects such as the Lagos – Ibadan Express Road, Abuja-Kaduna – Zaria Express Road and the Second Niger Bridge Project were funded through the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund.
“Other noticeable achievements in the road sector include the construction and upgrading of about 5,000 km of major road projects across the country through the Sukuk bond.
“In the energy sector, the power generation capacity increased from an average of 5,500MW in 2014 to about 13,000MW by 2020.
“Notwithstanding, a lot of investment is still required in the area of transmission and distribution which is currently being attended to by the federal government.
The minister, however, acknowledged that despite some noticeable efforts and progress, including allocation of at least 30 per cent of the federal annual budget to infrastructure projects since 2016, there are still huge and substantial infrastructure deficits across the country.
He said in 2019, Nigeria ranked 116 out of the 140 countries rated on Global Competitiveness by the World Economic Forum using infrastructure as one of the major yardsticks.
He pointed out that the Reviewed National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan and the newly approved National Development Plan (2021-2025) also estimated the current nation’s infrastructure stock to be between 30-35 percent of the GDP in 2020, far from the estimated target of 70 percent envisaged in 2043.
Agba noted that the ambitious infrastructural target cannot be provided by the government alone, adding that the private sector was expected to provide a chunk of the estimated amount through the Public Private Partnership (PPP).
According to him, “There is no doubt that the estimated resource requirement of $2.3 trillion for the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan implementation is enormous and tasking.
“The current yearly budgetary allocation available to fix and upgrade the nation’s infrastructure is too insignificant compared to the $150 billion that will be required yearly for the NIIMP implementation between 2020 and 2030.
“It is apparent, therefore, that the federal government alone cannot provide all the needed resources, more so as government revenue from the oil and gas sector are vulnerable to shocks in the international markets.
“Therefore, a well-coordinated and strategic approach will be required to harness sufficient resources to increase the stock of Nigeria’s infrastructure to the desired level by 2043.
“Besides investments by sub-national governments, the private sector is expected to play an increasing role either directly or in collaboration with the government through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) with Governments providing a supportive environment with stable and transparent policies, rules and regulations required for a robust PPP investment.”
As part of the source of funding for the infrastructural projects under NIIMP, he said, the federal government would continue to explore external borrowing as well as opportunities created by other government-controlled sources such as the Sovereign Wealth Fund and the Pension Fund to support infrastructure delivery.
On the implementation strategy for NIIMP, he said, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning was fully committed to the implementation of the Master Plan and has established an Infrastructure Delivery Coordinating Unit within the Ministry to effectively coordinate the implementation of the NIIMP with other stakeholders including MDAs, sub-national governments, the Private sector, international donor partners
He further revealed that the ministry was also working towards the speedy inauguration of the National Infrastructure Council (NCI), which is to serve as a policy advisory body on infrastructure development in Nigeria.
He, therefore, sought the support of stakeholders at all levels of government, the private sector, and development partners to assist in the full implementation of the reviewed NIIMP for the actualisation of the Plan targets and objectives for sustainable infrastructure development in Nigeria.
In his goodwill message, President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria(MAN), Mansur Ahmed, underscored the need for faithful implementation of the NIIMP by the government and other critical stakeholders.
Ahmed observed that enabling environment and legal framework had not been provided for its implementation since it was first initiated in 2014.
He pointed out that infrastructure is the backbone of economic development.
He, however, commended the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT for the review of the NIIMP especially at the time when the African Continental Free Trade Agreement is being implemented.
