The world’s economic foundation rests on three pillars. The first is arable land – if your land is fertile, you have a solid starting point, as seen in countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand. The second is crude oil, found in places like Saudi Arabia, Libya, Dubai, and Kuwait. The third, and perhaps most powerful, is steel production, as in South Korea.
Ajakuta Steel Company, located in Kogi State, has now become little more than a reflection of the past.
Its history dates back to 1958, when the government of Sir James Robertson, the last British Governor-General of Nigeria, conducted a feasibility study on establishing a steel company in the country.
In 1972, a year after the Nigeria Steel Development Authority was formed, iron ore was discovered in Itakpe, Kogi State, making Ajakuta an ideal location for the steel project.
In 1975, a Soviet survey team confirmed the deposits, and a contract was signed between the Nigerian government and the Soviet state-owned company Tiajpromexport (TPE). Nigerian engineers were sent to the Soviet Union for training in preparation for the project.
In 1979, the government of Shehu Shagari began construction. By 1980, Shagari laid the foundation stone for what was to be a \$4.6 billion project. At the time, it generated high expectations.
In 1983, Shagari inaugurated some completed structures, including the administration block. Since then, little progress has been made.
From a historical perspective, the Ajakuta steel project is older than Nigeria’s independence.
The plant covers about 12,000 plots, with a 68-kilometer road network and an additional 24 kilometers underground. It is larger than all Nigeria’s refineries combined.
It contains 43 different plants, from workshops to assembly units, designed to make almost everything needed for its operation on-site. One section is located on the bank of the River Niger, intended to serve as a seaport. Former president Umaru Musa Yar’adua began dredging work as part of efforts to revive the project. There is also a rail network planned to transport steel from the site.
The power plant is designed to generate 110 MW and feed it into the national grid.
Ajakuta is bigger than Lokoja. It has 24 housing estates, some with over 1,000 homes each. There is a National Diploma-awarding institution, hospitals, and the main steel plant itself.
If only the blast furnace were operational today, about 10,000 technical staff would be needed immediately for the first phase. In the steel industry, one technical job typically creates 50 more jobs indirectly, meaning the plant could generate up to 500,000 jobs.
No matter the field of study, there would likely be employment opportunities within the project.
Now 67 years after the initial idea, the Ajakuta project remains stuck in time.
Given today’s exchange rates and inflation, one might wonder – what would the original $4.6 billion investment amount to now?
Imam Writes from Kano
