Business
Stakeholders Task NPA On Eastern Ports Infrastructural Development
Stakeholders in the maritime industry have called on the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to wake up to its responsibilities in the provision of infrastructure to fast-tract development of eastern ports.
The group has also urged NPA to dialogue with host communities on matters concerning encroachment on the NPA land even as they called on government to partner with private sector, for the development of eastern ports.
The group made its position known in a communiqué at the end of a one-day senstisation seminar on Reviving Eastern Ports in Port Harcourt put together by the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeia (MARAN). But maritime operators however were worried over the spate of low patronage of eastern ports.
In the communiqué, the stakeholders attributed the low level of business activities at the Eastern Ports to non-provision of facilities that will encourage the berthing of bigger vessels in the east, unlike what goes on in Lagos ports.
They regretted that up till now, the Port Harcourt ports still have a draught of about 8.5 metres, while the Calabar Port also suffers 6.5 meters draught.
In his speech, the Chairman of the occasion, Mr Onwuka Igwe, who is the Director of Cabotage in the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, said that the level of inactivities arising from poor infrastructure was responsible for the importers running away from Eastern ports. The move, he said, has not actually helped in the development of the ports in the East, like their counterparts in the western ports.
He, therefore, called on the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority and other private investors to take up the challenge in infrastructural development in the Eastern ports so as to encourage international trade competition in the Eastern ports.
According to him, “the issue of where cargoes go depends on the choice of the importer, and infrastructural availability play key role in such decision making, even though there is also a political aspect to the game.”
But the Chairman, Publicity Committee of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria, Prince Olayeola Shittu agreed that the attitude and activities of some service providers at the ports, particularly at the Eastern ports have impacted negatively on the development of the ports resulting to the congestion at the Lagos ports.
Mr Shittu urged service providers to be more efficient in their services as well as provide training opportunities for the freight forwarders. He said that the council was doing everything possible to ensure that all known bottlenects in freight forwarding business ae removed.
Ealrier in his address, the President of the Maritime Reporters Associationof Nigeria (MARAN), Mr Adeleye Ajayi, said the seminar was inteneded to beam searchlight on the Eastern posrts, which over the years have suffered serious neglect and non-patronage.
He expressed displeasure over military, pilotage, shallow navigational channels and bad roads which occasioned low patroange inthe East. He, therefore, called on the Federal Governemnt to find a logical solution to the problems.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.
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