The Federal Government generates at least N300 million from Abuja-Kaduna train service every month.
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, made this known while speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Hard Copy.
According to the minister, the operation of the Lagos-Ibadan train service is financed by money generated from Abuja-Kaduna rail line.
He said, “We make N300million per month from the Abuja-Kaduna train,” the minister declared.
“Currently, we are running Lagos-Ibadan from the money we are making from Abuja-Kaduna rail service, at the end of the day, we pay back over N100million to the Federal Government.”
The minister noted that the country is capable of meeting its loan requirements.
This is coming after the Debt Management Office clarified that loans from China to Nigeria, which presently stood at $3.59bn, constitutes only 9.4 per cent of the country’s total foreign debt stock of $37.9bn.
The Director-General of DMO, Ms Patience Oniha, noted that the loans were largely concessional, as no national asset was tagged as collateral.
“Nigeria’s total debt stock as at September 30 was $37.9bn; this figure comprised the external debt stock of the Federal Government, 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory.
“But total loans from China stands at 3.59 billion dollars, which is 9.47 per cent of the total external debt. The loans did not require any national asset as collateral; they were largely concessional,’’ she said.
