The latest report by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) detailing its intervention disbursements to key sectors of the economy in the last four years showed that Lagos State Government borrowed around N196 billion for the financing of its ongoing Red Line and Blue Line rail projects across the state.
The apex bank, in its just published Development Finance Report for the past four years indicated that Lagos state received N196 billion in three tranches of N93 billion, N60 billion and N43 billion for the rail projects.
According to the data in the report, the N93 billion and N43 billion were for the Redline rail project while N60 billion served as part finance obligation from the state government to China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) for the construction of the Blue Line rail project.
Specifically, the report partly stated that the N60 billion facility for the Blue Line project was “to part-finance the payment of obligations of Lagos State Government to China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) Nigeria Limited for the construction of a Rail Line (Blue line project) and associated infrastructure from Okokomaiko to Marina under the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT)”
The apex bank’s report further indicated that the funds were disbursed to the Lagos, Imo and Ogun States, under the Differentiated Cash Reserve Requirement (DCRR) scheme, which was established in 2018, and 496 other beneficiaries in both the public and private sectors.
The CBN disclosed that Lagos State Government had repaid about N6.1 billion from the N90 billion loan received under the program and N2.71 billion from the N60 billion package while out of the N43 billion received for the Redline project, only about N534 million had been repaid.
By its design, the Lagos Blue and Red Line Rail project is a multimodal transportation system aimed at easing transportation of commuters across different locations within the state with a view to substantially reducing road traffic gridlocks across the state..
The Blue Line rail project is a 27-kilometre rail route designed to run from Okokomaiko eastwards to Mile 2 and then proceed to Marina via Ijora while the Red Line is a 37-kilometre m rail route proposed to run from Agbado to Marina with 13 stations at Agbado, Iju, Agege, Ikeja, MMIA International, (domestic), Oshodi, Mushin, Yaba, Ebute Metta, Iddo, Ebute Ero, and Marina.
