Aliko Dangote, the president of Dangote group, has applauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reform as a model of climate resilience and visionary infrastructural planning.
In an open letter posted by Bayo Onanuga, presidential spokesperson, on Wednesday, Dangote specifically commended Tinubu for addressing ocean surges and flooding in Victoria Island, as well as for building a new Atlantic city.
He commended the president for expanding the country’s infrastructure by simultaneously embarking on the construction of the Lagos-Calabar and Sokoto-Badagry superhighways, as flood-related disasters continue to devastate communities across the globe, such as the recent flash floods in Kerr County, Texas, which claimed over 100 lives.
Noting that the Eko Atlantic project has transformed the once flood-prone Bar Beach coastline into a thriving urban district protected by an 8.5-kilometre-long sea wall, he emphasised that it was initiated under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his tenure as governor of Lagos State.
“Asiwaju of Africa, your foresightedness is even more visible in view of the tragic incident in Kerr County, Texas, USA, where over 100 lives have sadly been lost to flash flooding. In the case of the Eko Atlantic City project spawned by you, a modern city spanning 1,000 hectares, protected by an 8.5-kilometre-long sea wall, protecting Victoria Island from coastal erosion, and giving birth to a dwelling constructed from new land created through sand dredging from the Atlantic Ocean.
“Your Excellency, this success story, which is now being used for residential, business, and recreational purposes, is amongst your many legacies, and those of us who live in Victoria Island are much better off for it.”
Dangote commended the exemplary intervention of Tinubu in ending the era of ocean surge and tackling the issue of perennial flooding affecting areas such as Ahmadu Bello Way, Akin Adesola Street, Bishop Oluwole Street, Amodu Ojikutu Street, Adetokunbo Ademola Street, and Karimu Kotun Street.
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He applauded the president for enriching the country’s stock of infrastructure while improving the national road network linking Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.
The latter of the two is a resurrection of a 48-year-old project, and both are being handled by a first-rate construction and civil engineering firm, Hitech Construction Company Limited.
He also said that Aliko Dangote foundation would soon launch a climate resilience fund targeting vulnerable Nigerian communities at high risk of flooding, in honour of the president’s infrastructural legacy.
Analysts have compared the land reclamation strategy in Lagos to the Dutch approach in Zeeland, where submerged land was successfully transformed into dry, usable terrain.
