President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday inaugurated the $600 million (N216billion) Port Harcourt International Airport terminal funded by the Export-Import Bank of China and the Nigerian Government.
The terminal was constructed by China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC). The company is also constructing new terminals in Abuja, Kano and Lagos International Airports. The President said opening the new terminal building of the Port Harcourt International Airport represents a significant landmark for international air travellers and the entire country.
He expressed regrets that since the opening of the airports across the country in the late 1970s and early 1980s, not much was added to increase the passenger handling capacity of these facilities by successive administrations.
“As part of the infrastructure renewal program, the construction of four new international terminals at Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano airports was embarked upon by the federal government with a view to modernising the aging airport infrastructure to meet global aviation standards and improved service delivery in tandem with best international practices.
Buhari praised the efforts of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, the Chinese government and the China Exim Bank for their financial support and the various roles they played towards the successful completion of the project. “At the presentation of the 2017 budget to the national assembly, I promised to upgrade and develop Nigeria’s transport, power and health infrastructure, and complete a number of stalled infrastructure projects.
“These include construction of new terminals at the country’s five major airports; numerous major road projects; key power transmission projects; and the completion of the Kaduna – Abuja as well as Itakpe to Warri Railway lines. Speaking earlier, Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, said the project, which commenced in February 2014, along with three other airports in Lagos, Abuja and Kano, was funded through the China Exim Bank loan of $500million with another $100million counterpart fund from the government of Nigeria.
“The new terminal being commissioned has capacity for seven million passengers annually, 15 times the number of total passengers for entire Ghana for emphasis.”
