Emmanuel Nicholas |The Ibom Deep Seaport and Industrial city is a signature project of the Udom Emmanuel administration. Considering that Industrialization has formed the focal point of his governance, it is fair to view it as uppermost on his heart.
That is to say, that everything Governor Udom Emmanuel is set about to achieve in his tenure as Governor of Akwa Ibom State is centered on Industrialization and the Ibom Deep Seaport and Industrial city project is fundamental to this agenda.
To start the expected Seaport and industrial city project, the Governor has approved the construction of a 36.7 km superhighway that will begin from Ukpenekan In Ibeno Local Government at the projected Ibom Industrial city and run through the state connecting the Seaport and industrial city at the Southern coast to the opposite extreme at the northern border of the state.
The Highway will go through Ibeno , Esit Ekid and Mbo Local Government Areas
The Ibom superhighway will be a 12 lane ultramodern thoroughfare with 6 lanes on either side of the divide. 4 of the lanes will be medial speed lanes and will have a toll gate while the other 2 lanes on either side will be to service exits into surrounding communities. It will have a rail track running through the length of the superhighway.
According to the Government, the project will be funded through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, and is expected to be completed within 24 months.
The Ibom Deep seaport, which is to be hosted at Ibaka , Ibeno and Esit Ekid waterways , formerly called Ibaka Seaport – along with the Industrial city, is at an advanced stage of implementation.
physical work will soon commenced, consultancy, feasibility studies and other tasks that make up the pre-infrastructure segment of such a mega-project, are on-going intensively. In fact, the Governor is motivated to kick start preparations for the Superhighway because of the advancement in all paper works of the Seaport and industrial city project.
A superhighway of this nature has countless benefits to consider. Other than the immediate benefit of facilitating the fluid movement of personnel, goods, freight inland from the port, it holds innumerable advantages not only to Akwa Ibom State, but to the rest of Nigeria and extension the more landlocked West African countries of Mali, Chad and others north of Nigeria.
Due to its complimentary natural draught, the Deep seaport is designed to be a transshipment hub, the biggest and best in West Africa. This implies that large mother ships will berth at Ibaka and transfer cargo to smaller ships that will then feed the other ports on the West and Central African coast.
This automatically implies enhanced volume of traffic from cities inland straight to Akwa Ibom and to Ibaka. Without a superhighway of this magnitude, then the already excellent road network of Akwa Ibom would become grossly inadequate, leaving a horrendous situation in the hands of the government. Huge trucks would roar through streets and roads in the peaceful towns and cities of Akwa Ibom, turning state to a dense jungle of traffic. Imagine what the superhighway will ease off.
Next to the deep seaport will lay the Industrial city. Knowing the determination of the Udom-led administration to see this project through, one knows that it is no longer a dream, but sure-fire certainty. The industrial layout will host many manufacturing factories generating diverse commodities meant to sell deep into the nation, and meant to be exported. The superhighway will serve to evacuate goods from this industrial district to other states. Besides, where raw material may exist in other distant parts of the country and state, the highway will serve to feed the industries.
The railway component of the highway is particularly an incentivizing inclusion. All over the world and through several ages, railways are proven to be highly efficient in aiding industrialization by the quick, uninterrupted, cost effective and easy movement of resources. Time saved in itself, is a major boost to efficiency.
The highway will also be a good source of income for the state and for the indigenes. Thousands will get jobs in the construction phase, and even after commissioning, the project will require maintenance.
That too is source of income for people, employed to manage the assets, and keep them in good shape.
Skills acquired in the construction of the project will mean that the Akwa Ibom people will be best suited for civil engineering projects of that kind in other places.
The toll gate will serve as an efficient source of Internally Generated Revenue for the State. That aside, the 2 outer lanes on either side of the divide service the surrounding communities. That implies the quick development of surrounding towns.
With the highway, it will be faster to transport these necessary resources and cheaper too, as the dreadfulness of congested traffic will be circumvented. These in effect amount to increased effectiveness.
It is worth mentioning that a Refinery is being planned for Ibeno, land has been cleared and equipments will move in to site in the nearest future. Meanwhile the petrochemical industry in Esit Eket is getting set to produce. The movement of crude oil and its derivative products and the petrochemical products constitutes tremendous concern for any pedestrian community and any government. The superhighway will go a long way to solve this challenge.
The Ibom Superhighway will open up the vast horizon of Akwa Ibom serving as an evacuation corridor for goods and personnel from the coastal industrial city and seaport and the channeling of resources for manufacturing in the industries; amongst countless other benefits.
It is certainly a blessing that Akwa Ibom people will remember the Udom Emmanuel led administration for through generations
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