FG, NITT, AAI Sign Concession Agreement For Smart National Transport Data Bank

The federal government has taken a major step towards modernising Nigeria’s transportation sector with the signing of a concession agreement for the implementation of the Smart National Transport Data Bank (S-NTDB) project.

The agreement was signed on Monday in Abuja between the Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT) and Asia Arab Investment Nigeria Limited (AAI), marking the commencement of what stakeholders described as a transformative initiative for transport governance, planning, security and infrastructure development across the country.

Speaking at the ceremony, former corps marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and chairman of the occasion, Boboye Oyeyemi described the project as a defining milestone in Nigeria’s journey towards intelligent, data-driven and technology-enabled transport governance.

Opeyemi, who is the chairman of the Chairman of Chartered Institute of Logistics and Technology Nigeria said the project represents the foundation of a new national transport intelligence architecture that will integrate real-time data from all modes of transportation, including road, rail, aviation, maritime, inland waterways and pipelines.

He said “Today is not merely another ceremonial event on Nigeria’s transport calendar. It represents a defining milestone in Nigeria’s journey towards intelligent, data-driven, integrated and technology-enabled transport governance.”

He commended President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approving both the National Transport Policy and the implementation framework for the Smart National Transport Data Bank project under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

This is even as the representative of the Asia Arab Investment Nigeria Limited (AAI), Dr. Hisham Ridwan said the signing of the agreement is the outcome of years of handwork.

Representing the permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Engr. Funsho Adebiyi, the director of Legal Services in the ministry, Barrister Olusegun Omotola, said the project reflects the federal government’s commitment to building a modern, intelligent and secure transportation system.

He disclosed that the Federal Executive Council approved the project after extensive technical, financial and regulatory assessments, expressing confidence in its potential to transform transportation planning and management nationwide.

In his address, the director-general of NITT, Dr. Bayero Salih Farah, described the project as a landmark initiative that would provide Nigeria with a single integrated real-time source of transport and mobility data.

He said the Smart National Transport Data Bank would transform how transport information is collected, analysed, shared and utilised for national development.

Farah explained that the project originated from a resolution adopted at the 12th National Council on Transport held in Makurdi, Benue State, in 2012, which directed the establishment of a national transport databank.

Also speaking at the event, director-general of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Dr. Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to ensuring the project’s successful implementation.

Ewalefoh noted that the project was reviewed by the ICRC, which issued the Certificate of Compliance that paved the way for Federal Executive Council approval.