Babagana Umara Zulum has established a quarry centre in Pulka to accelerate infrastructure development across Borno State.
Zulum announced the development on Monday while flagging off the distribution of 70 brand-new Howo pickup trucks to the State Ministry of Works and the Borno State Road Maintenance Agency at the Government House in Maiduguri.
The governor said the trucks would boost the operational capacity of the ministry and its agencies, enabling swift delivery of construction materials and quicker intervention on damaged roads across the state.
He explained that the quarry centre would supply locally sourced materials such as granite, gravel and sharp sand to support ongoing and future road projects, thereby reducing dependence on external suppliers and lowering construction costs.
“We have achieved a lot in health, education, agriculture, security and road construction among others. However, we still have challenges of constructing roads within the state, especially in rural communities,” Zulum said.
He disclosed that the quarry plant in Pulka has a processing capacity of 120 tonnes per hour, noting that the state government spent about N3 billion to establish the facility.
According to him, insecurity in some parts of the state has discouraged contractors from deploying equipment to project sites, necessitating increased reliance on government-owned resources.
“You know, no serious contractor will take the risk of deploying his equipment to most of the implementing areas, so this is the reason we are here,” he said.
Zulum added that the government had no option but to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Works, BORMA, and other departments responsible for road construction and monitoring.
The event was attended by the Secretary to the State Government, Bukar Tijani; Acting Chief of Staff, Babagana Mustapha Mallumbe; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works, Baware; BORMA Chairman, Sadu Auno; and Special Adviser on Monitoring and Evaluation, Bukar Gujubawu, among other senior officials.
