FG solicits $400 million investment from the private sector to complete the millennium tower in Abuja

The Federal Government of Nigeria has appealed to the private sector investors to invest $400 million required to complete the Millennium Tower and Cultural Centre (MTCC) in Abuja.

Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, made the appeal on Thursday in Abuja while inspecting the state of the project.

The millennium tower is a 170-meter tall structure with facilities for cultural exposition, tourism, socialisation, recreation, hospitality and commercial activities which was conceived in 2005 and has reached 40% completion.

What the minister is saying

The minister noted that they were there to showcase the project for private sector collaboration and investment. According to him, the total amount needed for the completion is the $400 million which will be sourced from the private sector.

• Appealing to the private sector he said “This is the only part of the world where every infrastructure is built by the government.
• “In other parts of the world where you have this kind of project, it is done in collaboration with the government and the private sector.
• “As a matter of fact, government is just to be an enabler
• “My appeal, therefore, is to the private sector, particularly lovers of arts and recreation, to join hands with the Federal Government to complete the project.
• “All the facilities have to do with contents, cultural centre, five-star hotel, museums, arcades and others, it will generate a lot of revenue for whoever has the courage to partner with us,’’ Mr Mohammed said.

Also speaking at the project site is the FCT minister, Mohammed Bello, whose office is placed with the responsibility of supervising the project.

The FCT Minister said the project lacked enough resources for budgetary allocation for its completion. He noted that they were at the site to identify other sources of funding apart from budgetary allocation.

• “We started by tackling the road networks, the rail system and now water.
• “As you can see, this is a massive project that will require a lot of funding.
• “We are here to see how we can identify other sources of funding apart from budgetary allocation or Internally Generated Revenue (IGR),’’the FCT minister said.

What you should know

• The Millennium Tower and Cultural Centre is made up of four museums, an expansive arcade consisting of 40,000m2 platform for hosting national and other events and a five-star hotel with 55 luxury rooms and nine suites for about 130 persons.
• It also consists of offices, passive and active recreational facilities, a 1200 capacity auditorium, conference rooms, exhibitions halls, shops, a sport centre with an indoor pool, gyms, fitness, squash courts and a two-level 1,200 capacity basement car park.