Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On October 6, 2022, China Eximbank and the Government of Nigeria signed a $845,753,419 preferential buyer’s credit (PBC) agreement for Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project. The PBC (loan) carried the following estimated borrowing terms: a 20 year maturity, a 7 year grace period, and a 2.5% interest rate. Nigeria’s House of Representatives authorized the borrowing in July 2021. The borrower was expected to use the proceeds of the loan to finance 85% of the cost of a $995,004,021.95 commercial contract that China Harbour Engineering Company Limited and the Government of Nigeria signed on on May 22, 2018. The purpose of the project is to construct the 16 km Lafia Bypass Road and the 251.7 road segment that runs from 9th Mile (in Enugu) to Makurdi via Otukpo. China Harbour Engineering Company Limited is the EPC contractor responsible for project implementation.
Staff comments
1. This project is also known as Construction of Lafia Bypass Road and the Dualization of 9th Mile (Enugu)–Otukpo-Makurdi Road Project (Keffi Phase II). 2. The Chinese project title is 尼日利亚凯菲至马库尔迪公路改扩建工程项目. 3. The China Eximbank loan for Phase 1 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project is captured via Record ID#31098. 4. The borrowing terms of the China Eximbank loan for Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project are unknown. For the time being, AidData assumes that the same borrowing terms (a 20 year maturity, a 7 year grace period, and a 2.5% interest rate) which applied to the China Eximbank loan for Phase 1 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project also applied to the China Eximbank loan for Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project. 5. In its Chinese Loans to Africa (CLA) Database, Boston University’s Global Development Policy (GDP) Center records the loan commitment year for Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project as 2017. AidData records the loan commitment year as 2021 for two reasons: (1) Nigeria’s House of Representatives did not authorize borrowing until July 2021. (2) The Government of Nigeria itself records the loan commitment year as 2021 in its voluntary reporting to the World Bank through the Debtor Reporting System (DRS). 6. As of December 2023, the China Eximbank loan for Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project was not included in the China's Overseas Development Finance Database (CODF), which is managed by Boston University’s Global Development Policy (GDP) Center. 7. The loan commitment date is identified by the following source: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/9k9ojnv5p2a3cjlnc2z7v/.pdf?rlkey=3j42dtjucj0whrunwzq4o2kgm&dl=0 8. There is some evidence that suggests two China Eximbank loans (a USD-denominated loan and RMB-denominated loan) were issued in support of Phase 2 of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road Reconstruction Project. This issue warrants further investigation. See https://www.dmo.gov.ng/debt-profile/external-debts/debt-service/4729-nigeria-s-actual-external-debt-service-payments-in-1st-quarter-2024/file