By Kingsley Adegboye

ABUJA—The Subsidy Re-investment and Empowerment Programme, SURE P, has allocated N30 billion for the completion of the Loko–Oweto Bridge, on the borders of Nasarawa and Benue states, by 2015.

Minister of Works, Mike Onolememen, gave the assurance of adequate funding of the project  when he inspected on-going project in company of the Director (Highways) North Central, Ejike Mgbemena and other senior officials from the ministry at the weekend.

Onolememen said the project was awarded to Messrs RCC Nig. Ltd. on November 2, 2011, at a cost of approximately N36 billion but added that work did not begin on time because they needed to change the project alignment to avoid difficult terrain over which the alignment initially traversed.

The project, he said, was also stalled by abnormal high water level caused by the unusual flood of last year’s rainy season, “which has now been adequately addressed with the ongoing work.”

According to Onolememen, upon the re-design of the project, “the contract now consists of the construction of two dual carriage bridges across River Benue with 3.88km-long approach at Loko end in Nasarawa State and 3.09km-long approach road at Oweto in Benue State.”