FERMA Launches ‘Operation Safeguard The Road’ in Abia as Okafor Urges Youths to Seize Opportunity for Skill-acquisition

The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), has officially launched Operation Safeguard The Road (OSGR) in Abia State, an initiative designed to improve road safety, empower youths, and promote community-driven infrastructure maintenance.

The programme, flagged off at Azumini in Ukwa East Local Government Area, is part of FERMA’s broader effort to enhance road conditions, reduce accidents, and create short-term employment for youths aged 18–45 across local communities.

Speaking during the launch, the Federal Roads Maintenance Engineer, Abia State, Engr. Okafor Festus Obiora, described the initiative as both a development and empowerment project.

“This programme is tailored as an empowerment programme for the youth. It is good to employ our young people and engage them meaningfully,” Obiora said.

“As you are cleaning the roads, you are also cleaning your community. At the same time, you have the opportunity to learn new skills. From pothole patching, asphalt laying, to operating maintenance machines—these are skills that can become future sources of income.”

He further encouraged youths to approach the project with an open mind, stressing that the temporary employment opportunity also doubles as a training ground for self-sustenance.

Representative of FERMA Managing Director/CEO, Chukwuemeka Agbasi, the Zonal Director, South East II, Suleiman Mohammed, emphasised that OSGR aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

He noted that the programme is strategically designed to promote road safety, foster community ownership, discourage vandalism, and enhance socioeconomic resilience.

The Abia OSGR project covers: vegetation control for better road visibility, drainage management to reduce flooding, pothole patching and minor road repairs, hands-on training in road maintenance operations as well as stipends for participating youths

OSGR builds on FERMA’s earlier programmes such as the Stakeholders Assisted Rights of Way Maintenance Implementation Programme (SHAROW-MIP) and the Stakeholders Assisted Rights of Way Economic Sustainability Programme (SHAROW-ESP), both of which reinforced the agency’s commitment to inclusive, people-centered road maintenance.

The launch of OSGR in Abia represents not just improved infrastructure, but also a lifeline of empowerment for young people searching for opportunities.