The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has said it will support the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) in its efforts to make Abuja a green city by developing an environmentally friendly public transportation system.
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello, stated this when he received the NADDC management, led by its Director General, Jelani Aliyu.
The FCT minister said the administration’s long-term objective was to build Abuja into one of the country’s greenest cities, after taking a test drive in a Hyundai Kona, an electric vehicle built in Nigeria as a major means of public transportation was a major part of that plan.
He said: “The proposal brought to us by the DG fits into our long-term plan for the city. As you know, we pride ourselves in having Abuja as one of the greenest cities in the country, from the generation of vegetation and planting of trees to the concerted efforts to make sure that modern waste disposal system are entrenched.
“So, this just takes us to the next step which is trying to improve on the transportation system in the city, particularly our mass transit system and what is called the last mile.
“That is why if you noticed in many parts of the city now, we don’t allow tricycles and motorcycles to operate and gradually, we are working towards eliminating the use of diesel buses. But ultimately, my vision and the vision of my team is that Abuja should go electric in terms of powering the bus systems and even the motor vehicles as we have seen today,” he added.
While speaking on the availability of the technology to enable wide use of the electric vehicles, the Minister said, “this is something that requires a lot of planning and as you can see, technology for solar, solar batteries and retention of power, gradually is improving.
So if we start now and imbibe it as a culture, I think it’s a matter of time and we will get there”.
He pledged the support of the FCT administration to the NADDC in terms of the organisation’s requirements for its projects either directly or through a Public Private Partnership (PPP).
He also commended the NADDC DG and his team across the country and encouraged them to see Abuja as a good location for all their activities.
Director General of the NADDC, Mr Jelani Aliyu, the said his team was in the FCTA to begin discussion with the Administration in good collaboration to make their contribution in making Abuja one of the most advanced and green cities in the world.
He said that the Hyundai Kona is the first ever electric vehicle assembled in Nigeria with a range of about 492 kilometers which could be charged from any electric outlet and it was in respect of the vehicle that the NDDC has developed solar charging stations in Sokoto, Lagos and Nsukka.
