Editorial
HIV: Containing The Spread
As the world celebrates World AIDS
Day (WAD) on Sunday, December 1,
2013, the threat of the disease to global population and economy has remained as potent as it was in 2004, when the United Nations Organisation (UNO) dedicated the day to annually create awareness on the impact of the disease.
Even as statistics of global prevalence rate remains hazy owing to a number of factors, the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) says about 3.4 million Nigerians are living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which causes Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
According to NACA, the nation-wide prevalence stabilised at 4 per cent, but more than 12 States still carried higher burden, even as Nigeria is behind target on several important indicators.
Among states with higher burden is Rivers State where the prevalence rate hovers around 6.1 per cent. In fact, Ogbogu Community in Egi Clan of Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of the State was recently reported to have recorded a rate of 7.2 percent.
Regrettably, achieving accurate statistics of prevalence for planning and treatment purposes has been a major challenge not only because statistics are updated every three years, but the reluctance of people to go for the test. Also worrisome is the difficulty in accessing statistics from private clinics and traditional birth attendants.
These challenges can only point in one direction – a possible increase in the population of people living with HIV/AIDS, regardless of the Federal Government’s commitment to bringing down the prevalence rate.
As the world focuses on HIV/AIDS, the need to tackle the spread, discrimination and related death in line with the theme: “Getting to Zero New Infection, Zero Discrimination and Zero AIDS-Related Deaths” remains apt.
This theme which will run till 2015, underscores the importance of the current approach towards substantially reducing new infections and old attitudes towards HIV/AIDS that still ravages the health of many in spite of the advances on the study of the condition.
In Rivers State, the film, STIGMA, produced by the Rivers State Ministry of Health in collaboration with Nollywood and the healthcare industry is billed to premiere at Silver Bird Cinema in Port Harcourt. This will to a large extent capture the attention of a critical mass of the population.
STIGMA, which will feature notable Nollywood artistes and the best special effects in the movie industry, is aimed at sensitising, educating, re-orientating and modeling societal attitude against stigmatisation of people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
The Tide believes, however, that the battle against HIV/AIDS should begin with the encouragement of people to know their status with a view to managing the case as early as possible and avoid its degeneration to AIDS. Also of essence is the avoidance of unprotected sex that can promote the spread.
Reports of absence of anti-retroviral drugs and lack of access to them in parts of the country remains as condemnable as the attitude of some health workers towards people living with HIV/AIDS.
With a youthful, poor and illiterate population in Nigeria, the management of HIV/AIDS can be a major challenge. Added to a recent prediction that new cases may rise in Nigeria from rapid population growth because of recent developments in Mozambique and Tanzania, Nigeria will need to do more than ever to equip her people against such pressures.
We therefore urge schools, churches, faith-based organisations and donor agencies to continue to lend their support to the campaigns against HIV, especially the vulnerable group. Governments across the country should commit more funding to the fight against HIV/AIDS. Added to donor funds the control on the prevalence rate in Nigeria can be improved.
Editorial
Making Rivers’ Seaports Work

When Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, received the Board and Management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), led by its Chairman, Senator Adeyeye Adedayo Clement, his message was unmistakable: Rivers’ seaports remain underutilised, and Nigeria is poorer for it. The governor’s lament was a sad reminder of how neglect and centralisation continue to choke the nation’s economic arteries.
The governor, in his remarks at Government House, Port Harcourt, expressed concern that the twin seaports — the NPA in Port Harcourt and the Onne Seaport — have not been operating at their full potential. He underscored that seaports are vital engines of national development, pointing out that no prosperous nation thrives without efficient ports and airports. His position aligns with global realities that maritime trade remains the backbone of industrial expansion and international commerce.
Indeed, the case of Rivers State is peculiar. It hosts two major ports strategically located along the Bonny River axis, yet cargo throughput has remained dismally low compared to Lagos. According to NPA’s 2023 statistics, Lagos ports (Apapa and Tin Can Island) handled over 75 per cent of Nigeria’s container traffic, while Onne managed less than 10 per cent. Such a lopsided distribution is neither efficient nor sustainable.
Governor Fubara rightly observed that the full capacity operation of Onne Port would be transformative. The area’s vast land mass and industrial potential make it ideal for ancillary businesses — warehousing, logistics, ship repair, and manufacturing. A revitalised Onne would attract investors, create jobs, and stimulate economic growth, not only in Rivers State but across the Niger Delta.
The multiplier effect cannot be overstated. The port’s expansion would boost clearing and forwarding services, strengthen local transport networks, and revitalise the moribund manufacturing sector. It would also expand opportunities for youth employment — a pressing concern in a state where unemployment reportedly hovers around 32 per cent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Yet, the challenge lies not in capacity but in policy. For years, Nigeria’s maritime economy has been suffocated by excessive centralisation. Successive governments have prioritised Lagos at the expense of other viable ports, creating a traffic nightmare and logistical bottlenecks that cost importers and exporters billions annually. The governor’s call, therefore, is a plea for fairness and pragmatism.
Making Lagos the exclusive maritime gateway is counter productive. Congestion at Tin Can Island and Apapa has become legendary — ships often wait weeks to berth, while truck queues stretch for kilometres. The result is avoidable demurrage, product delays, and business frustration. A more decentralised port system would spread economic opportunities and reduce the burden on Lagos’ overstretched infrastructure.
Importers continue to face severe difficulties clearing goods in Lagos, with bureaucratic delays and poor road networks compounding their woes. The World Bank’s Doing Business Report estimates that Nigerian ports experience average clearance times of 20 days — compared to just 5 days in neighbouring Ghana. Such inefficiency undermines competitiveness and discourages foreign investment.
Worse still, goods transported from Lagos to other regions are often lost to accidents or criminal attacks along the nation’s perilous highways. Reports from the Federal Road Safety Corps indicate that over 5,000 road crashes involving heavy-duty trucks occurred in 2023, many en route from Lagos. By contrast, activating seaports in Rivers, Warri, and Calabar would shorten cargo routes and save lives.
The economic rationale is clear: making all seaports operational will create jobs, enhance trade efficiency, and boost national revenue. It will also help diversify economic activity away from the overburdened South West, spreading prosperity more evenly across the federation.
Decentralisation is both an economic strategy and an act of national renewal. When Onne, Warri, and Calabar ports operate optimally, hinterland states benefit through increased trade and infrastructure development. The federal purse, too, gains through taxes, duties, and improved productivity.
Tin Can Island, already bursting at the seams, exemplifies the perils of over-centralisation. Ships face berthing delays, containers stack up, and port users lose valuable hours navigating chaos. The result is higher operational costs and lower competitiveness. Allowing states like Rivers to fully harness their maritime assets would reverse this trend.
Compelling all importers to use Lagos ports is an anachronistic policy that stifles innovation and local enterprise. Nigeria cannot achieve its industrial ambitions by chaining its logistics system to one congested city. The path to prosperity lies in empowering every state to develop and utilise its natural advantages — and for Rivers, that means functional seaports.
Fubara’s call should not go unheeded. The Federal Government must embrace decentralisation as a strategic necessity for national growth. Making Rivers’ seaports work is not just about reviving dormant infrastructure; it is about unlocking the full maritime potential of a nation yearning for balance, productivity, and shared prosperity.
Editorial
Addressing The State Of Roads In PH

Editorial
Charge Before New Rivers Council Helmsmen

-
Rivers5 days ago
IAUE Governing Council Chair Assures On Mandate Delivery
-
Featured5 days ago
Fubara Tasks New SSG On Honour, Service, Protection Of Rivers Interest
-
Opinion5 days ago
Dangers Of Unchecked Growth, Ambition
-
Editorial5 days ago
Making Rivers’ Seaports Work
-
News5 days ago
RSG Cancels ?134BN Secretariat Contract, Orders Refund Of ?20BN Mobilisation … Revalidates Four Projects
-
Opinion5 days ago
Betrayal: Vice Of Indelible Scar
-
News5 days ago
NLC Faults FG’s “No Work, No Pay” Policy
-
News5 days ago
Group Harps On Empowerment Of Girl Child