The government of Anambra has finalized plans to introduce a rail transport system to improve the movement of goods and people within the state.
Arch. Okey Ezeobi, the Managing Director of the state Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), revealed that the state government has enlisted the services of an international infrastructure development firm to create the rail master plan.
Ezeobi said the firm, CPCS Transcom Limited, based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, has been chosen from 10 international organisations that applied for the design.
According to him, investors are eagerly anticipating the implementation of the master plan due to the bankability and feasibility study conducted on the railway initiative.
Ezeobi said further said that the state government has commenced payment for the master plan design, which will take railways to the boundaries of the state.
“With the rails, moving containers from the ports will be cheaper and faster”
He also said: “We looked at their track record after considering the technical bids, the financial bids, their domestic experience before arriving at the CPCS.
”It is also instructive to note that the firm had acclaimed Anambra, under Governor Chukwuma Soludo, as a forward-thinking state.”
Ezeobi assured that it would encourage accountability and transparency in public funds utilisation in line with Soludo’s vision to ensure adequate value for money.
He said that the new direction and changes in Soludo’s government is one that will restore public trust, as people are now aware of how their resources are spent, adding that ‘procurement’ is a process that must reflect accountability and transparency.
He insisted that local council leadership must be accountable in their handling of public funds, assuring that plans had reached an advanced stage to absorb local council staff into BPP to ensure proper training on procurement.
