The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a $516.3 million syndicated loan sought by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to finance Section 1 (Phase 1A and 1B) of the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway.

The approval followed the adoption of a report by the House Committee on Aids, Loans and Debt Management during plenary.

Presenting the report, the committee’s chairman, Abubakar Hassan Nalaraba, urged lawmakers to endorse the request, describing the 120-kilometre stretch as critical to national development and connectivity.

Earlier, a member of the committee, Abdullahi El-Rashid (Dukku/Nafada, Gombe), moved the motion for consideration of the report, stressing the strategic importance of the project to economic integration.

The motion was seconded by Bello Isah Ambarura (Illela/Gwadabawa, Sokoto).

The House subsequently resolved into the Committee of Supply, where the report was considered clause-by-clause and all five recommendations were approved before final adoption in plenary.

Lawmakers endorsed the $516.3 million facility from Deutsche Bank AG and approved its inclusion in the Federal Government’s rolling borrowing plan.

They also backed the financing structure, which includes a partial guarantee by the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit, a nine-year tenor with up to three years’ moratorium, and an interest rate benchmarked at CME SOFR plus 5.35 per cent per annum.

To ensure accountability, the House mandated strict legislative oversight, directing the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Debt Management Office, and the Federal Ministry of Works to submit quarterly reports on disbursement and project implementation.

It also directed that all executed financing agreements be transmitted to the National Assembly within 30 days of financial close, while relevant committees are to carry out continuous monitoring.

In addition, provisions were made for competitive procurement processes, independent technical and financial audits, and periodic evaluation of project milestones to ensure transparency and value for money.

The approval followed a request by Tinubu in a letter dated April 20, 2026, addressed to the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, seeking legislative backing for the external loan.

In the correspondence, the President said the facility would fund Sections 1 (Phase 1A and 1B) of the highway, part of a broader 1,000-kilometre corridor linking Nigeria’s North-West to the South-West, stretching from Sokoto through Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo and Ogun states to Badagry in Lagos State.

Tinubu described the project as a flagship initiative under the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aimed at improving connectivity, reducing travel time and logistics costs, enhancing trade and food security, and strengthening national cohesion.

He added that the highway would also accommodate future rail integration and utility infrastructure, noting that the financing plan had already received approval from the Federal Executive Council.