The Federal Government has scheduled the inauguration of key railway sections linking Kaduna, Kano and Katsina states for December 3, 2026, as work on the projects approaches completion. The projects are expected to improve transportation, strengthen commercial activities and connect major Northern cities to the Federal Capital Territory by rail.
According to the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council, the 400-kilometre Kano-Katsina-Maradi railway project has reached 70 per cent completion, compared with five per cent when President Bola Tinubu assumed office in May 2023. The council said the administration had accelerated work on the projects, which experienced slow progress before 2023.
The Kaduna-Kano railway will extend the existing Abuja-Kaduna standard gauge line, creating a continuous rail connection between Abuja, Kaduna, Zaria and Kano. The Kano-Katsina-Maradi line is also expected to improve cross-border trade with neighbouring Niger Republic and provide safer transport for passengers and goods.
The campaign council said a Federal Government delegation led by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transportation, Funso Adebiyi, recently inspected the projects and conducted a test-run journey from Jaji in Kaduna State to Kano. The team reportedly expressed satisfaction with the construction quality, including the railway alignment, drainage, embankment protection and soil stabilisation.
President Tinubu has also directed the immediate resolution of outstanding land acquisition and compensation issues within Kaduna metropolis to facilitate the completion of the Abuja-Kano rail corridor. The sections scheduled for inauguration include the 190-kilometre Jaji-Kano route and the 250-kilometre Dawanu-Kano-Kazaure-Daura-Katsina section.
Meanwhile, the Forum of Former Commissioners and Special Advisers in the North has declared support for Tinubu’s re-election in 2027. The group said its decision was based on national unity, political stability and the need to sustain cooperation between the North and Southwest, with the expectation that presidential power would return to the North in 2031.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Gambo Garamba Jada, and National Secretary, Richard Tersoo Mnenga, the forum cited historical political alliances between leaders from both regions. It also recalled Tinubu’s role in the formation of the APC and his mobilisation of support for former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 and 2019, arguing that the North should reciprocate by backing his second-term bid.
