Boko Haram: Borno spends N3bn to establish quarry, acquire trucks to reconstruct rural roads

The Borno State Government has announced that it has spent N3 billion on establishing a quarry centre and procured 70 trucks to commence the reconstruction of rural roads across the state, which were destroyed by a decade-long Boko Haram conflict.

Governor Babagana Zulum announced this during the flag-off and distribution of 35 brand-new Howo pickup trucks at Government House, Maiduguri.

The trucks were handed over to the Ministry of Works and the Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA) to accelerate infrastructure development across the state.

According to him, the Pulka quarry plant has a processing capacity of 120 tons per hour and will supply granite, gravel, and sharp sand for ongoing and future road projects.

The move is aimed at reducing dependence on external suppliers and cutting costs.

“We have achieved a lot in health, education, agriculture, security, and road construction, among others. However, we still have challenges of constructing roads within the state, especially in rural communities.

“My administration has established a quarry plant in Pulka with a processing capacity of 120 tons per hour. The State Government spent at least 3 billion to establish the quarry plant,” he said.

The governor noted that prevailing insecurity has made most contractors unwilling to deploy equipment to project sites in Borno.

“You know, no serious contractor will take the risk of deploying their equipment to most of the implementing areas, so this is the reason we are here. To address the gap, the state is strengthening its own agencies.

“So, we have no option but to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Works, the capacity of Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA), the capacity of special projects, monitoring departments and other MDAs that are responsible for road construction,” the governor added.

The 70 Howo trucks are expected to boost operational capacity by enabling the swift delivery of materials to sites and faster intervention on distressed roads.