LAGOS – Though the Federal Government has been busy around the Nigeria Railway Corporation, perhaps more than any other federal organisation in the last couple of years, commuters appear to have discovered – much to their chagrin – that the claims don’t match the actual achievements.
The hitherto moribund Nigeria Railway Corporation has, indeed, been enjoying the overwhelming attention of the Federal Government since the erstwhile administration of Goodluck Jonathan, with the Buhari administration giving it much more focus and financial input running into billions of dollars so far.
The collapse of the Nigerian railway system many years back gave rise to commuters relying on road transport for the movement of goods and services within the country, accounting for more than 90% of the means of transportation.
The situation of our roads became worsened, requiring that the other means of transportation be revived, especially the railway, to save the transport industry from collapse.
The Nigerian Railway Corporation recently announced that it generated N2.12 billion as revenue in the first half of 2021, representing a 123% increase, compared to N946.86 million generated in the previous period (H2 2020).
According to the report, the revenue generated in the reviewed period is 94.9% higher than N1.09 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2020.
Also, the H1 2021 figures represent the highest on record, according to data obtained from the NBS.
However, not a few Nigerians were taken aback and brazenly surprised by such a declaration, owing to the number of years it remained epileptic to the point of almost becoming extinct.
According to the report, the number of passengers who used rail transport between January and June 2021 was 989,845, representing about 273.4% increase when compared to 265,075 recorded in H2 2020.
Meanwhile, the volume of goods measured in tons reduced 11.6% from 60,264 recorded in H2 2020 to 42,782 in H1 2021.
A breakdown of the report shows that 424,460 passengers were conveyed through trains in the first quarter of 2021, while 565,385 were transported in Q2 2021.
Through
the National Integrated Infrastructure Masterplan (NIIMP), the Nigerian
government is stepping up investments in infrastructure development,
with particular attention given to rail transportation.
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