A former Minister of Transport, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, has said the the wagon assembly plant at Kajola, Ogun, have much capacity to create employment, facilitate knowledge transfer and boost rail transport.
Amaechi made this known at a maiden transport summit organised by the Transportation Correspondents Association of Nigeria, on Thursday in Lagos.
According to Amaechi, the plant was built to ensure Nigeria produces wagons and other rolling stocks needed for railway development.
“There are so many things we had in the rail project that most other countries did not get.
“If you get to Prof. Yemi Osinbajo Train Station at Kajola, there is a wagon rolling stock there. We commissioned that facility in 2023.
“The Kajola Locomotive and Wagon Rolling Stock was not part of the Lagos-Ibadan Rail Project, but we insisted that the Chinese must build the facility to enable us gain knowledg in the area of wagon and rolling stock manufacturing.
“I told the Chinese that I was going to give them a contract to supply Nigeria 200 rolling stocks. I, however, told them that I would not approve the contract if they would not build a wagon assembly plant in Nigeria.
“The agreement was signed,” he said.
He said that the aim was to create employment and reduce foreign exchange pressure
Amaechi added that he had also demanded building of a Transportation University by a Chinese contractor, and it was done.
“The Kajola Locomotive and Wagon Assembly Plant was one of the demands I made from the Chinese, and it was also built.
“I was in South Africa and saw that they were producing locomotives. I asked them how they did it, and they said they awarded a locomotive contract to Chinese and asked them to build a plant for them so they would know how they did it.
“Because I wanted Nigeria to also benefit the same way, I demanded that the Chinese should build a wagon and rolling stock depot in Nigeria,” he said.
He urged Nigeria’s continued investment in the transport sector. (NAN)