FEC Greenlights NITT’s Smart National Transport Databank Project to Revolutionise Nigeria’s Transit Ecosystem

ABUJA — In a decisive move to fix Nigeria’s persistent transport infrastructure planning and logistics deficit, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) has officially approved the Smart National Transport Databank (SNTDB) project. Led by the Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT), Zaria, the initiative marks a massive structural shift toward automated, data-driven governance.

​The approval, which followed a rigorous regulatory review and final business case certification by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), highlights President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ongoing administrative push to replace legacy frameworks with private-capital-driven public-private partnerships (PPP).

​According to Dr. Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, the Director-General of the ICRC, the timing of the project targets a fundamental flaw in the country’s economic planning.

​”Nigeria’s biggest transport challenge is not just infrastructure—it is the lack of reliable, usable data,” Ewalefoh stated following the FEC approval. “What this administration has done… is to lay the foundation for a data-driven transport system that improves planning, enforcement, and overall efficiency across the sector.”

​Inside the Multimodal Intelligence Architecture

​The SNTDB is engineered to serve as a comprehensive, real-time nationwide digital backbone. It will integrate operational logistics across all major modes of movement: road, rail, air, and marine transport.

​To achieve this, the initiative will bypass manual auditing by deploying high-tech physical and digital infrastructure across the country’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The core deliverables of the rollout include:

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• ​250 Solar-Powered Smart Gantries: Automated structures deployed nationwide to track vehicular flow, capture transit patterns, and host multi-sensor arrays.

• ​RFID-Enabled Smart E-Tag Technology: Seamless digital tracking mechanisms for vehicles to streamline identification, tolling, and security compliance.

• ​State-Level Traffic Management Centres: Localised operational hubs built across every state in the federation to monitor traffic conditions on a 24/7 basis.

• ​A Centralised National Data Centre: A secure, high-capacity repository tasked with processing, analyzing, and distributing the massive incoming stream of real-time transit intelligence.

​The PPP Funding Engine: DBFOT Model

​Crucially, the multibillion-naira project relies heavily on private financing rather than a strained national budget. Under a structured Design-Build-Finance-Operate-Transfer (DBFOT) model, NITT will collaborate with Asia-Arab Investment Nigeria Limited as the primary private proponent.

​This partnership leverages international technological expertise to establish, scale, and manage the system over a specified concession period before ownership fully reverts back to the Federal Government.

​NITT Director-General and Chief Executive, Dr. Bayero Salih Farah, credited the successful breakthrough to years of rigorous, targeted inter-agency coordination and stakeholder engagement. He noted that the initiative directly elevates Nigeria into the ranks of forward-looking nations utilizing intelligent transport systems (ITS) for security, leakage reduction, and economic forecasting.

​Immediate Macroeconomic Implications

​By deploying Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) alongside vehicle e-tagging, the system gives security forces a powerful tool to track stolen assets and monitor volatile highway corridors. Beyond tracking, it secures immediate revenue assurance by plugging massive leakage points within transport registration, transit penalties, and regulatory compliance.

​The NITT and the Federal Ministry of Transportation have issued an immediate call to state governments, private logistics operators, and development partners to align their local transit systems with the upcoming national database framework. With hardware rollouts anticipated to commence in the coming months, Nigeria’s transport sector stands on the precipice of its most significant technological evolution in decades.