By Paul Aondoakaa, Makurdi 

President Bola Tinubu has approved N86 billion for the reconstruction of the Adikpo–Ajayi–Tese–Akpa–Otukpo Road, a key federal highway linking Benue's northern and southern senatorial districts to Cross River State. The approval is part of 27 road projects worth over N3.9 trillion cleared by the Federal Executive Council across 15 states.

The Adikpo–Otukpo road project was among 27 federal road approvals announced by Works Minister David Umahi after Monday's Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja. Reporting from Daily Post and Punch confirms the N86 billion figure and the road's description as traversing Benue and Cross River states. One outlet's account groups it alongside the Enugu–Abakaliki road as a matching N86bn allocation.

The Adikpo–Otukpo corridor is one of Benue's major federal highways, connecting communities across the state's two senatorial zones while extending into Cross River. It has long been a priority route for residents and has featured in separate, related announcements including a Tinubu-awarded contract for the linked Oju–Ogoja road in 2025, which also connects Benue and Cross River.

The Federal Ministry of Works, FEC, communities along the Adikpo–Ajayi–Tese–Akpa–Otukpo corridor, Benue and Cross River state governments, and road users/transporters relying on the route for trade and mobility.

Improved road conditions are expected to ease movement of people and goods, reduce transport costs, and support trade between Benue's northern and southern districts and neighbouring Cross River.

The Adikpo–Otukpo approval sits within a larger infrastructure drive that also includes the near-complete Abuja–Kaduna–Kano highway (first 118km section finished; remaining 164km targeted for November) and, separately, a N34.4 billion airstrip approved for Gboko, Benue.