The head of the Nigerian Railway Corporation just dropped some brutal numbers about how the country basically ignored trains for six decades straight. Kayode Opeifa pointed out that from 1962 through 2000, the government built absolutely nothing while other places were upgrading to bullet trains and magnetic levitation tech. Nigeria sits at 4,000 kilometers of track compared to South Africa's 35,000.
The big shift happened when lawmakers moved rail from federal-only control to something states and private companies can actually touch. Lagos had been trying to build metro lines for years, but kept getting blocked until the 2023 constitutional change freed everything up. Six state governments are moving forward with their metro plans, and Opeifa thinks construction could kick off by 2026 if the momentum holds.
The big shift happened when lawmakers moved rail from federal-only control to something states and private companies can actually touch. Lagos had been trying to build metro lines for years, but kept getting blocked until the 2023 constitutional change freed everything up. Six state governments are moving forward with their metro plans, and Opeifa thinks construction could kick off by 2026 if the momentum holds.
