FG to Deliver Kaduna-Kano-Maradi Rail Line by December 2027
The Federal Government has said work is going on smoothly on the Kaduna-Kano-Maradi rail line, and the project is expected to be delivered by the end of 2027.
The project is a critical infrastructure linking Abuja to Kano and extending to Maradi in Niger Republic.
It is a standard gauge railway which is being constructed by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC).
Speaking to journalists during a media tour of northwest states over the weekend, the Project desk officer, Abdullahi Adamu Yakubu, said the Kaduna – Kano section of it is 203km and is 68 percent complete. He added that the section is expected to be delivered in December 2026.
He added further that the 296km main line of the other section is from Kano, passes through Jigawa and Katsina and ends in Maradi. He also said the main line expected delivery date is December 2026.
According to the official, there is a 104km branch line that starts from Kano and ends in Dutse, and is 63 percent complete.
He told journalists that the expected completion date for the branchline is December 2027.
“The railway line will go through bridges. We have constructed three out of the six stations. The major station is in Kano, which will link to the one in Jigawa and Maradi. It is more of an international hub that will accommodate a capacity of 1,000 passengers.
“The economic advantage is that it will take the load off the roads if completed. And it will provide jobs and can lift freight, which will increase the lifespan of the roads.
“We have security surveillance from Kaduna here to Kano and to Maradi. We are also planning to construct a fence to avoid attacks on the passengers. In terms of maintenance, there is a documented arrangement,” he noted.
Once this becomes operational, the Kano station is being designed as an international transport hub with the capacity to host up to a thousand passengers at once.
According to the vision behind the project, the Kano station would become the largest railway station in Nigeria, combining both the Kaduna-Kano line and the Kano-Maradi corridor into a single, high-volume passenger and freight terminal .
An inland dry port is also being activated along the route, which will aid in preserving the roads. Shifting freight from heavy trucks to rail will reduce the burden on highways, extend the lifespan of the country’s road network, and lower transportation costs for businesses.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has also recently approved the construction of adjacent roads to complement the rail line, enhancing access to stations and improving overall connectivity. These rail infrastructure approvals were recently extended to Lagos, Kano, and Kaduna as part of a coordinated urban transport modernisation strategy valued at approximately $2.99 billion .
When completed, it will link the commercial hubs of Kano and Kaduna to Abuja, establish Lagos ports as the choice for import and export business for landlocked Niger Republic, and drive economic growth through new business opportunities and job creation across the region.
Also speaking in the course of the tour, the Commissioner for Information in Kaduna state, Ahmed Maiyaki, said: “This is one important project that will help strengthen business activities. The station in Kano will connect to the Dala Dry Inland Port, which means goods from the Lagos ocean can be cleared and transported to Dala Port for final clearance.
“This will further increase the lifespan of our roads because one of the challenges facing our roads is the heavy trucks using them.
“But with the train, we will be able to move the goods directly to the Dry Port in Dala, Kano, to increase commerce and economic activities in this area. This is one of the most important projects undertaken by the government of President Tinubu.
“Let me use this opportunity to thank Mr President because the road we are standing on, which leads to Birnin Gwari, had been abandoned for over two decades.
“However, Mr President recently granted approval for the construction from Mando roundabout to Birnin Gwari, which is about 105km. It is a very important project for Kaduna State.
“We must equally acknowledge that the FEC [Federal Executive Council] also approved the construction of the light rail project for Kaduna State. These legacy projects were approved for three states comprising Lagos, Kaduna and Kano. Two of the states are from the North. It is a project that will gulp about N1 trillion.
“So, for anybody to claim that the current administration of President Tinubu has abandoned the North is not true. We must thank Mr President for these legacy projects that will live for our future generations to see.
“Mr President has also constructed a solar power project to take the National Defence Academy (NDA) off the national grid. About 20 universities in Nigeria, including the NDA, have had a share of this solar project, and another is ongoing at ABU Zaria. Kaduna is the only state that received two of these projects.
“Other states are getting one for a federal university, but Kaduna received them for ABU and the NDA. This is something very important to acknowledge; we are waiting to pay back Mr President because the good people of Kaduna appreciate his support and will continue to support him beyond 2027 so that Nigeria will continue to witness this unprecedented and uncommon infrastructural development,” he said.