Tinubu redesigning northern economy with Kano as hub — Yilwatda
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is currently implementing a deliberate economic masterplan to transform Kano State
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is currently implementing a deliberate economic masterplan to transform Kano State into Northern Nigeria’s economic capital and a premier commercial gateway for West Africa.
This declaration was contained in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Communications Strategy, Abimbola Tooki in Abuja on Sunday.
Yilwatda was quoted to have emphasized that the federal government’s massive infrastructure and industrial investments in Kano are part of a coordinated strategy to restore the state to its historic status as the commercial heartbeat of the North.
According to the APC chairman, "The presidency is focused on making Kano the largest business and industrial hub in Nigeria after Lagos. He noted that the state’s geographical position makes it the natural link between Nigeria and the Sahelian trade belt.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not merely developing Kano; he is redesigning the economic future of Northern Nigeria through Kano,” Yilwatda stated.
“His administration understands clearly that Kano is the natural commercial nerve center of the North and the gateway between Nigeria and the wider West African hinterland.”
Highlighting several multi-billion naira projects set to alter the region's landscape, Yilwatda noted that Federal Government is fast-tracking the completion of the Kaduna–Kano standard gauge railway, a critical project that will connect Kano directly to Abuja and Southern Nigeria through modern rail logistics, drastically reducing the cost and time of moving goods and passengers. The line is expected to be operational this year.
The Kano–Maradi rail line will connect Kano to Niger Republic and the broader Sahel trade belt, opening vast export and import corridors into Francophone West Africa. This project, designed for completion in 2027, will significantly expand Kano’s role as Nigeria’s principal inland export gateway.
Yilwatda also referenced the recently approved Kano Metropolitan Rail Service to modernise transportation within Kano metropolis, decongest urban movement, improve logistics efficiency, and support Kano’s emergence as a modern mega-city
He also cited strategic investments in power generation and transmission across the Northern industrial belt, including projects tied to the Kaduna–Kano axis that will improve electricity reliability and support industrialisation.
Yilwatda further cited the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline to deliver gas to factories and revive dying industries in the region, while assuring that the completion of rehabilitation and expansion road work on the Abuja-Kano road and the Sokoto-Badagry Super Highway will link Northern agricultural belts to Southern ports.
The Chairman explained that reviving Kano is synonymous with reviving Northern industry. Adding that Northern prosperity is critical to national stability.
Yilwatda argued that no previous administration has assembled such a comprehensive and interconnected infrastructure strategy for Northern Nigeria.
“Who before now conceived this scale of integrated development for the North: rail lines, gas pipelines, metropolitan transit, industrial power, superhighways and regional trade corridors, all designed to work together?” he asked. “This is vision. This is strategic leadership.”
He asserted that history would remember President Tinubu as the leader who successfully repositioned Kano as the undisputed economic capital of the North and built the foundation for Nigeria’s next era of prosperity.
APC Chairman also took a swipe on opposition parties, accusing them of prioritizing "power politics" over developmental ideas. He claimed that while the President is busy building the nation’s infrastructure backbone, the opposition has remained focused on propaganda.
“They offer no ideas, no blueprint, no alternative vision,” Yilwatda remarked. “Their only manifesto is to insult the APC and attack every development initiative because they lack the capacity to think beyond politics.”
