The Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT), Zaria, Kaduna State, has earmarked N8,771,000,000 for the construction of roads in five northern states.

This was contained in the 2026 appropriation bill of the Ministry of Transport, presented to the National Assembly late December 2025 by President Bola Tinubu.

NIIT is an institution saddled with the responsibility of training and providing skilled manpower for the transport sector, such as road, rail, maritime and aviation sectors.

The institute, in the appropriation bill, was allocated the sum of N37,189,077,683, representing 8.60 per cent of the total allocation of N432,298,285,025 to the ministry.

Also, the N8,771,000,000 allocation for road construction in the five northern states indicated 23.6 per cent of its total allocation for the 2026 budget.

Further breakdown of the road construction revealed that the institute planned to construct a road in Sabuwar Kasa-Kahutu-Kudan area in Katsina State at a cost of N1,400,000,000. The project was marked “ongoing” in the appropriation bill.

The institute, in another project, planned to construct rural access roads in Jigawa, Katsina, Sokoto and Kebbi states at a cost of N2,100,000,000.

Besides, it further earmarked the sum of N1,400,000,000 for the construction of farmers’ access road across Sokoto, Katsina and Kebbi without proper location of the project mentioned in the appropriation bill.

NITT, in the appropriation bill, also planned construction of an asphalt road and drainage in “selected locations in the north” at the sum of N1,750,000,000.

Another N2,100,000,000 was earmarked for the construction of rural roads, culverts and drainages in unnamed “selected locations in the federation,” while another N210,000,000 was planned for the construction of roads with asphalt at Sabuwar Kaurar Garba, Rano/Bunkure/Kibiya Federal Constituency of Kano.

All the projects were marked “ongoing” by the institute in the appropriation bill.

Transport analyst, Dr Adewale Adebanjo, expressed worries about the road projects.

Adenajo, in an interview with The Guardian, wondered why a training institute like NIIT would earmark about 25 per cent of its allocation on road construction, while abdicating its primary duties of developing skilled manpower for the nation.

He called on the National Assembly to properly scrutinise the entire appropriation bill before its passage, noting that several other ministries and agencies may have padded their projects.