Anambra: Soludo’s 16.4km road project cuts travel time to 15 minutes, boosts agriculture, tourism
Vice President of Boardwalk Group and Abuja-based real estate developer, Chief Mrs. Obiageli Okwubanego, has commended Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo, for completing the 16.4-kilometre Nawfija–Ajali–Ufuma–Ogbunka Road, describing the project as a major economic lifeline for communities in Orumba South Local Government Area.
Speaking with journalists on Wednesday in Maitama, Abuja, Okwubanego said the newly completed road has drastically reduced travel time between the affected communities and Awka, the state capital, to about 15 minutes, while easing the perennial traffic congestion experienced during festive periods.
According to her, the road now serves as an alternative route for motorists who previously spent several hours in traffic around Umuomaku and neighbouring communities during Christmas, Easter, August meetings and other celebrations.
“This road is very strategic and like a bypass. The traffic gridlock that kept people on the road for over four hours during festive periods can now be avoided as motorists and travellers use this route,” she said.
She recalled that the idea for the road project was conceived during the burial of her mother, at a time Soludo was campaigning for governorship.
“The road was in a terrible state and moving my mother’s casket became very difficult.
Thousands of people who attended the burial also suffered seriously because of the bad road. I appealed to Governor Soludo to extend the road project to Ogbunka, my mother’s hometown, and today that vision has become a reality,” she stated.
Okwubanego described the project as a reflection of Soludo’s ongoing infrastructure and economic transformation agenda across Anambra State, noting that the road would significantly improve the movement of goods and people within the area.
“Governor Soludo’s solution has come to our communities, and this will bring huge transformation to the entire Orumba South Local Government Area,” she added.
She noted that residents of Nawfija community had never enjoyed a tarred road since the town’s existence, praising the governor for what she described as compassionate and selfless leadership.
“Since I was born in Nawfija community, the residents had not enjoyed a tarred road. Soludo, in the spirit of compassion and selfless leadership, has now provided us with our first-ever properly constructed road,” she said.
Highlighting the economic benefits of the project, Okwubanego explained that the road would boost agricultural production in the area, especially palm oil farming, for which the communities are widely known.
“The adjoining communities are predominantly farming communities and contribute a large share of the palm oil produced in Orumba South.
The famous palm plantations spanning over 20 hectares are located in Nawfija, and this road will greatly support the movement of agricultural produce,” she explained.
She also said tourism activities in the area would witness significant growth with easier access to attractions such as the popular Oji Stream, known for fishing and irrigation activities.
“With the famous Oji Stream attracting visitors for fishing and irrigation, the completion of this road will open up the area for more human and business activities,” she noted.
Okwubanego further expressed her deep emotional attachment to Nawfija community, saying her passion for the area inspired her continuous contributions to its development, including efforts to connect the community from the state grid to the national grid and the provision of transformers.
“My dear Nawfija community means so much to me, which is why I passionately pleaded for this road project. Beyond that, I have also contributed to improving electricity supply in the community by providing transformers and supporting efforts to connect the area to the national grid,” she said.