The Kogi Progressive Stakeholders Forum (KPSF) has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for approving the design and procurement of the Otuocha-Anam-Ibaji-Idah road, a 108-kilometre corridor set to link Kogi and Anambra States.
In a press statement issued by the group’s State Coordinator, Sani Philips, KPSF thanked the President for what it described as his sustained commitment to infrastructural development and improving the welfare of Nigerians.
According to the statement, the forum had raised the request for the road’s construction at a one-day Zonal Strategic Meeting held on 9 July 2026 in Anyigba, Dekina Local Government Area. The meeting was convened to formulate strategies for President Tinubu’s re-election bid, and stakeholders present used the occasion to appeal to the President for the construction of the Otuocha-Ibaji-Idah road.
“We are pleased to hear that the President, being a proactive leader who listens graciously, approved the design and procurement of the Otuocha-Nzam-Ibaji-Idah road on 13 July 2026,” the statement read.
The forum said residents of Ibaji and Idah local government areas in Kogi East, in particular, were appreciative of the President’s move, which they said would create jobs and revitalise socio-economic activities across communities in both Anambra and Kogi States.
KPSF said the economic value of the road, once completed, would be substantial. The route is expected to connect several agrarian rural communities to major commercial hubs, cut travel time, and strengthen the transit corridor linking the industrialised South East to the North Central region’s transport network — a development the group said would boost the local economy on both sides of the corridor.
The statement placed the road approval within the broader context of the Tinubu administration’s infrastructure drive, which it said has included major projects such as the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Kano-Maradi Railway, alongside the newly approved Otuocha-Nzam-Ibaji road.
On the economy, KPSF pointed to the removal of the petrol subsidy and the unification of the official foreign exchange market as reforms aimed at boosting government revenue and restoring macroeconomic stability. The forum noted that Nigeria’s gross external reserves reached $51.04 billion by mid-June 2026, the highest level in roughly 17 years, a development it attributed to sustained foreign exchange inflows, improved oil revenues, and increased foreign investor participation in fixed-income markets.
The group also cited the establishment of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which provides interest-free loans to tertiary students, as a milestone in education and youth empowerment.
On agriculture and food security, KPSF referenced the administration’s declaration of a state of emergency on food insecurity, the launch of a N100 billion Agricultural Development Fund, and the introduction of the National Livestock Programme, which it said was designed to boost productivity and help resolve farmer-herder conflicts.
The forum further extended its appreciation to the Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo, for consistently drawing the Federal Government’s attention to the need for the Otuocha-Anam-Ibaji-Idah road.
KPSF used the statement to reaffirm its commitment to mobilising citizens across Kogi State in support of President Tinubu’s re-election bid, as well as other candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming Presidential and National Assembly elections.
