Through the issuance of Sovereign Sukuk, the DMO has mobilized and deployed ₦742.557 billion for the construction and rehabilitation of 4,000 kilometres of roads and bridges in Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones and the FCT. The DMO and its partners are preparing to issue another ₦150 Sovereign Sukuk to address Nigeria’s massive infrastructure gap, which is 30 percent of its GDP, far below the World Bank’s benchmark of 70 percent.
Leadershipng reported that Ms Patience Oniha, the director-general of the DMO, said that Sukuk is one of the ways to enhance infrastructure development. Umar Bakare, the director of the highway department at the Federal Ministry of Works, said that Sukuk funds have helped his ministry to build 60 roads spanning about 3,200km. He expressed optimism that the new Sovereign Sukuk will help to bridge the infrastructure gap.
The sixth Sovereign Sukuk for ₦150 billion has a tenor of 10 years and a rental rate of 15.75 per cent. The funds will be used to finance the rehabilitation of road projects and bridges that the federal government has identified. The DMO has 10 transaction parties for the Sukuk issuance, which aims to attract ethical investors.
The representative of the works ministry said that they have maintenance engineers who oversee the quality of the road projects. The representative of the FCTA urged the investors to have confidence in the federal government securities to fund Abuja, which is the nation’s capital. He also appealed to the authorities to allocate more funds to the FCTA for the construction of roads.
