The Traffic

Tinubu Vows to Deliver 284km Kano-Maradi Rail Line by 2026

By Achimi Muktar

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that the long-awaited 284-kilometre Kano-Jigawa-Katsina-Maradi railway will be completed by 2026, setting a bold deadline for one of Nigeria’s most strategic infrastructure projects.

Speaking in Katsina on Friday during the commissioning of the state’s new Agricultural Mechanisation Centre and a 24-kilometre Eastern Bypass, Tinubu reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to regional development and cross-border trade.

“When finished, the project will ease the transportation of persons and goods, thereby relieving the pressure on our roads,” Tinubu said.

He also revealed that contracts have been awarded for major road rehabilitation projects, including the Marabar Kankara–Dutsinma–Katsina Road and the Zaria–Hunkuyi–Dabai–Kafur–Malumfashi–Dayi–Gidan Mutum Daya Road, vowing that they will be delivered on time.

“We are determined to deliver these roads on schedule,” the president assured.

The president noted that the second phase of the Katsina-Kano Road is also back on track after previous bureaucratic setbacks were resolved.

While applauding Governor Dikko Radda for impressive gains in agriculture and infrastructure, Tinubu praised Katsina’s model approach to food security.

“The federal government has provided over 6,000 water-pumping machines to boost irrigation farming in Katsina,” Radda said in response, adding that the state had spent over N2 billion on 448,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser for 2024.

Even more, the state is set to launch the distribution of 400,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser for 2025 and has ramped up its agricultural extension workforce from just 72 to over 778.

With rail, roads, and agriculture firmly in focus, Tinubu’s 2026 vision signals a push to transform Northern Nigeria into an economic corridor—and the countdown has officially begun.