More than 3,000 employment are created by Wike’s bus and taxi terminal improvements in Abuja, according to Sholadoye

Residents of Abuja are thrilled Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), started the ongoing building of three bus and taxi terminals in Abuja, which has created over 3,000 jobs for locals.

Wike launched the project in July 2024, with terminals being built in Mabushi, Central Area, and Kugbo to enhance commuter safety and convenience while boosting employment.

According to Rasheed Sholadoye, Project Manager at Planet Projects, the executing firm, the workforce includes skilled and unskilled artisans, as well as security personnel.

Sholadoye explained that part of the conditions in the contract was for the company to employ residents in the executing of the project as part of FCT Administration’s strategy for job creation.

He said: “FCT residents have enjoyed enormously from this project. We have employed a whole lot of them.

“You know it’s a construction site and certain workers will be needed at certain stages of the construction.

“It’s difficult to give you an exact number but more than 3,000 residents have been engaged and more will be employed as the work progresses.

”Sholadoye said while the construction of the bus terminals in Mabushi and Kugbo commenced in July 2024, that of Central Area commenced two months later.

He explained that the delay followed the relocation of some underground facilities at the project site located close to eagle square.

The project manager expressed optimism that despite the delay, the projects were still on track and would be delivered as scheduled.

He disclosed that Mabushi bus terminal has reached 92 per cent completion, the one in Kugbo was currently at 85 per cent completion while that of Central Area was about 50 percent.

“Hopefully with our schedule and programme of work, by the grace of God, the terminals in Mabushi and Kubo will be ready for inauguration by the end of February.

“On the other hand, the one in Central Area will be ready in May.

“The projects are all encompassing with commercial activities in all the terminals, including cinema halls, where people can relax while waiting for their bus.

“We are bringing state of the art facilities, especially the one in Central Area. It will be a terminal that the people of Abuja will love to see and enjoy,” he said.

Some of the workers at the sites, who lauded the initiative, thanked Wike for putting food on their table.

One of them, a 30-year-old welder, Ibrahim Musa, who lives in Kuje, said the project has provided him with a stable job.

Musa, who thanked the FCT minister for mandating the contractor to employ residents, said the steady means of income has significantly improved his standard of living.

On her part, a 45-year-old mother of four, Mrs Abimbola Omole, a cleaner at the Mabushi terminal, expressed optimism for a brighter future as a worker in the facility.

Omole said she was working as a house help but lost the job when her employer travelled out of the country.

She said: “Life was difficult for me and my children until I got this job. I am grateful to the FCT minister for making this happen for me.”