The Federal Government will take decisive steps to halt years of waste and neglect following an inspection of the long-abandoned Government Printer facility in Abuja by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, on Thursday.

During the visit, the minister expressed deep concern over the state of the facility, describing the abandonment of the multi-billion-naira project as unacceptable and inconsistent with the Federal Government’s renewed focus on prudence, accountability, and optimal use of public assets under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The minister recalled that the foundation stone for the facility was laid in 2001 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, noting that the project is about 70 per cent completed, with several high-grade printing equipment supplied as far back as 2007.

Shockingly, many of the machines, imported from countries such as Germany and India, remain unopened in their original crates more than a decade later, with some of the technology now obsolete due to prolonged neglect.

The Government Printer, which serves as the official printer of the Federal Government, is responsible for producing sensitive national documents, including the Federal Government Gazette and other critical publications of the Ministry of Information and National Orientation.

The prolonged inactivity of the facility, the minister noted, has forced the government to outsource printing jobs that ought to be handled internally, undermining efficiency and national capacity.