The Minister of State for Works, Barr. Mohammed Goronyo, has reaffirmed the federal government’s intention to deepen its longstanding friendly ties with the People’s Republic of China to upgrade the nation’s road infrastructure and boost the competence of Nigerian engineers in handling contemporary challenges.

This was revealed in a statement issued by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Ministry, Mohammed Ahmed, on Thursday.

According to the statement, the minister emphasized the Ministry’s resolve to advance Nigeria’s road network through improved technical expertise, up-to-date engineering methods, and internationally recognized best-practice approaches.

“He proposed key areas of collaboration, including: Training opportunities for Nigerian engineers in China, Provision of modern road construction and maintenance equipment, Transfer of advanced road technologies and methodologies to support local adaptation and long-term sustainability.” He added.

In response, the Vice President of CGGC, Mr. He Yongjun, who led the delegation, expressed the company’s strong interest in contributing to Nigeria’s infrastructure development.

He requested direct access to project opportunities, though he expressed reservations about participating through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework -which remains the officially approved and transparent process for government contract acquisition.

The Chinese delegation was received by the Minister of State who was assisted by the Director of Human Resource Management, representing the Permanent Secretary, as well as other Directors and senior staff of the Ministry, and the Managing Director of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Engr. Dr. Chukwuemeka Agbasi, accompanied by senior FERMA officials.

The Chinese had Mr. He Yongjun, Vice President of CGGC Global PLC who was accompanied by Mr. Song Yunwu (Security Director), Ms. Tian Yimeng (Director, Africa Marketing Department), Mr. Peng Changbing (Director, Project Management Department), and other senior officials of the corporation.