LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT REFUNDS 145 FORMER SUBSCRIBERS OF EGAN HOUSING ESTATE
By Oyebola Owolabi
The Lagos State government yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) to bring the Green Line to life.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced the move on his official X handle.
‘The Green Line is a 68km rail line that will run from the Lekki Free Zone to Marina, connecting with the Blue Line at Marina. This new line will transform our transport landscape, linking key areas like Victoria Island, Lekki, Ajah, and more,’ he noted.
Sanwo-Olu added: “This rail line is projected to carry over 500,000 passengers daily at launch, rising to over a million as demand grows. With the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and CHEC leading the design, financing, and operation, the Green Line will redefine public transport in Lagos.
“It also complements our existing rail lines, including the Red Line, which has already begun partial operations. Together, these lines form the backbone of our Strategic Transport Masterplan, designed to create a fast, efficient, and connected Lagos.
“Just yesterday, we celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Lagos Rail Mass Transit Blue Line, which has served an impressive two million passengers without significant disruptions. This success shows that Lagos is ready for more – we are ready for the future. In August 2024, the Blue Line increased daily trips from 54 to 72, reducing travel time between Marina and Mile 2 from 30 to 18 minutes.
“The impact of these rail lines goes beyond transportation – they are catalysts for economic growth, connecting communities, reducing travel times, and enhancing the quality of life for millions. We are building a city that works.
This is Lagos, and we will continue to lead.”
*Govt partners Chinese company to boost rice milling, processing
The government has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese food processing company, Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Co. Limited, to increase productivity in the rice value chain and enhance food security.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is presently in China for the ongoing Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), witnessed the signing of the agreement on Wednesday.
Special Adviser to the governor on Agriculture (Rice Mill Initiative), Dr. Oluwarotimi Fashola, signed the MoU for the Lagos State government, while Group Director, Rice Industry Division, Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Co. Limited, Mr. Wang Wei, signed for the rice firm.
The signing was also witnessed by the Group Head of Rice, Wilmar Group, Mr. Prashant Trikha.
According to the governor, the collaboration will enhance rice production and agricultural productivity in Lagos State, in line with his administration’s quest for food security and agricultural revolution.
alise that we have the capacity to feed ourselves as a people, if we put the right investment in agriculture. That is why our administration has prioritised agricultural value chains. Our rice initiative with the Imota Rice Mill is projected to provide 1,500 direct jobs and over 250,000 indirect jobs. The rice mill alone has a capacity to produce 2.8 million bags of 50 kg bags of rice yearly.
“The government is committed to enhancing agricultural productivity and has been actively engaged in the promotion of rice cultivation to meet the high demand for rice consumption in the state, further to which it has established a 32-metric-tonne per hour capacity rice mill in the Imota area.”
Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Co. Limited is one of the largest food processing companies in the People’s Republic of China, which operates an integrated rice business covering the rice value chain, from cultivation to processing and distribution of milled rice.