RAAMP Nigeria Stakeholders’ Participation in the Engineering Procurement & Contract Management Training for World Bank funded Projects

3 November 2025

TURIN (ILO News) – The Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP) successfully concluded a high-level international capacity-building training at the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITC–ILO), Turin, Italy, held from 17th to 21st November 2025. A total of 19 stakeholders from Federal Ministries and RAAMP FPMU as well as implementing States SPIUs participated in the Engineering Procurement, Contract Management and Dispute Resolution training for World Bank funded projects, designed to strengthen technical competencies for World Bank-funded projects.

Insight

The mission included representatives from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture & Food Security, the Federal Ministry of Finance, National Officers from the RAAMP Federal Project Management Unit, State Project Coordinators and Director-Generals from Kaduna, Bauchi, Ogun, Ekiti, Gombe, Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Sokoto, and Katsina States. The team arrived between 14th–15th November and returned to Nigeria between 23rd–24th November.

The training delivered a comprehensive blend of lectures, case studies, and study visits, led by expert facilitators Prof. Yusuf Saad and Ms. Esmerina Petutschnig. Core modules covered World Bank procurement regulations, Project Procurement Strategy for Development (PPSD), risk management, contract administration, KPI-based performance monitoring, claims and dispute resolution, arbitration, and market analysis tools. Participants also applied these concepts through practical exercises, including bid evaluations, risk allocation case studies, and contract management simulations.

A highlight of the mission was the integration of curated exposure visits to Nice, Monaco, Monte Carlo, Venice, and Milan, which offered firsthand practical perspectives on global infrastructure planning, urban mobility systems, and cultural approaches to public works delivery.
Engr. Aminu B. Mohammed, National Coordinator, RAAMP, expressed his high satisfaction on timely, quality of training and importance of procurement and contract management in current and future RAAMP Scale-up project. He also shared that, the collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO) will enhance the quality of RAAMP delivery, facilitate capacity building for key stakeholders involved in RAAMP through targeted training and knowledge sharing, stakeholders will gain the skills needed to implement RAAMP effectively.

Key outcomes of the mission include strengthened technical capacity across states, enhanced inter-state collaboration, improved understanding of FIDIC-based contract management, and greater alignment with international procurement standards. The training reinforced RAAMP’s commitment to delivering transparent, efficient, and value-driven rural infrastructure projects.

As a next step, RAAMP plans to replicate similar capacity-building training locally in February 2026 for State Procurement Officers and implementing partners. The mission represents a significant step toward improving procurement harmonization, contract administration proficiency, and evidence-based planning across all RAAMP-participating states.

Photograph of RAAMP officials during training. Turin, Italy, 11/2025.

About ILO – RAAMP Project

The Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), is a third-generation rural transport initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria, financially supported by the World Bank (IDA) and the French Development Agency (AFD). The RAAMP project aims to strengthen rural access and agricultural marketing (40 Agro-logistics Centres) across 19 participating states while bolstering the financing and institutional foundations required for the effective development, maintenance, and management of the rural road network. By upgrading 2,000km, spot-improving and maintaining 3,000km of rural roads, communities are expected to gain year-round access to essential social, economic, and life-enriching facilities and services.

ILO technical support is designed to systematize the execution of 1,000km of routine maintenance works and 250km of spot improvements works for rural roads and bridges within the RAAMP maintenance component across Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Niger, Ogun, and Sokoto States with a proposed expansion to other participating states. A key target is the generation of 200,000 workday decent paid jobs (30% women and 3% PWD) for unemployed people by employing labour-based technology and local resource-based operations, underpinned by capacity-building of 500 participants including Government Managers, engineers and officials, Contractors, Road Maintenance Groups (RMGs), and Local community maintenance stakeholders and the incorporation of international best practices and experiences in rural road maintenance and upgrading. The ILO team operates with the Federal Project Management Unit of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and works in close coordination with the State Project Implementation Units, Rural Access Road Agencies (RARA) and State Road Funds (SRFs) and relevant State ministries, departments, and agencies to ensure alignment and effective implementation.