Kugbo Market Will Have 10,000 Daily Users, Says Mesotho Group

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The project developer and Chairman of Mesotho Group Limited, Jerry Joseph Damara has said that Kugbo International Market in Abuja will accommodate 10,000 daily users when the market is commissioned this year by President Muhammadu Buhari.

He said the number of users will include regular traders, shoppers and people that work in the market.

According to him over 5,000 labourers were employed to build the market developed on a 13 hectres of land at Kugbo Hills along Abuja-Keffi Road in collaboration with Abuja Investment Company Limited.

He assured that the Phase 1 of the project that has about 36 lock-up shops would be commissioned in three months having attained 85 per cent completion.

Damara said the shopping complex administrative block was nearing completion while work had also advanced on other facilities like the banking halls, toilets and restaurants.

“We are in Phase One where about seven and half hectres of land is being developed. We want to make it life before we move on to Phase Two where we are proposing a hotel and so many other things. We plan to link this side and the other side together as a solar farm. And this is the first market in Nigeria that has a multi-purpose and multi-level car park. We are doing two-storey in two areas. And I can assure that 1,000 cars will be parked at the same time conveniently without being visible to outsiders,” Damara said.

Also, the site engineer, Abolarin James, evaluated the construction to be structurally stable while guaranteeing the safety of investors and shoppers in the market.

“Here we are using 20 mm of iron despite the fact that it is just the ground and the first floor and 20 mm in our columns and beams for both the ground floor and the upper floor while our spacing is just three metres by four metres. Our structure is rigid. Our concrete grid is 25mm so all the structures you see here are well constructed and structurally stable,” Abolarin said.

He assured that the market is designed to last for centuries and not for 200 or 200 years, adding the only things the developers may decide to change are the roofs, windows and doors.

Ethan, Ajoonu, Ized Headline TEDxUniversityofBenin

The Commissioner of Oil and Gas, Edo State- Ethan Uzamere, Precious Ajoonu and Ized Uanikhehi, were prominent figures who took the stage and delivered talks at the maiden edition of TEDxUniversityofBenin, held at University of Benin, Benin City, recently.

With the theme “REIMAGINE: To change the narrative,” the event focused on creating a new narrative for the youth in Benin city. In TEDx manner, the event sparked conversations that could form the seeds for hope and growth among young people in the state.

The lineup of speakers included experts from fields such as technology, education, sustainability, marketing and business. The speakers brought a wealth of knowledge and expertise, and the audience was treated to various inspiring and thought-provoking talks.

Ethan Uzamere, who spoke first, gave a well-rounded opening address bordering on perseverance and the focus to keep pushing your dreams to action.

One of the highlights of the event, which held January 28, was a talk by Precious Ajoonu, a renowned expert in curriculum design and development knowledge facilitator. Her talk focused on the importance of utilising the vast human capital in Benin city.

The Founder/CEO of Zed lnc., Ized Uanikhehi, spoke on using storytelling to drive innovation from Chaos, focused on using content to reshape narratives.

According to the organisers, “TEDxUniversityofBenin was organised to address the less-than-positive stereotypes associated with Benin City.

TED is a nonprofit organisation devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or fewer) delivered by today’s leading thinkers and doers.