Despite securing a $700 million loan for the rehabilitation of Lagos’ Apapa and Tin-Can Island Ports, the Federal Government has yet to start work on these vital projects.
Recall that in April, it was reported that the NPA secured a $700m loan from Citibank for the rehabilitation of the Apapa and Tin-Can Island Ports in Lagos. It had announced plans for reconstruction with the loan funded by UK Export Finance, an export credit agency.
Announcing this in a statement, the NPA had said it also opened discussions with another funding agency to finance the upgrading of the Eastern Ports, including Calabar, Warri, Onne, and Rivers Ports, as well as the reconstruction of Escravos Breakwater. The NPA has assured that work will begin by the second quarter of 2025, following the completion of additional documentation.
However, despite these moves, the port rehabilitation seems to be a mirage, as no progress has been made, with no work yet to commence.
Stakeholders, including maritime groups, are expressing concern over the delays, citing issues like port congestion and safety hazards.
Reacting to this development, a maritime group, ‘Research at Sea Empowerment Research Centre’, in a document titled: ‘Re: Delayed implementation of the $700m ports rehabilitation budget, matters of concern’, said the situation at Nigerian ports was indeed concerning.
The group’s Head of Research, Eugene Nweke, stressed that the lack of implementation of the approved rehabilitation budget is exacerbating the issues. He expressed the centre’s concern over the continuous delay in the implementation of the port rehabilitation.
According to him, “Equally, the centre offers to draw government attention over a need to put in place a milestone implementation processes/plans and a definitive rehabilitation project vision to drive the implementation”.
Nweke urged the Government to immediately commence the implementation of the approved $700m rehabilitation budget. According to him, implementing the rehabilitation process will help address the pressing concerns at the ports, such as congestion, poor berth production, and ship turnaround time.
He advised the government to establish a transparent project management system to ensure that the rehabilitation works are carried out efficiently and effectively, while emphasising the need for the government to prioritise the most critical infrastructure that needs rehabilitation, such as the quay walls, cranes, and handling equipment.
Nweke, who is also a former President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, pointed out that the Government should also address the underlying issues that have led to the current state of the ports, such as “inadequate maintenance and repair of existing infrastructure, insufficient investment in new infrastructure and technology, inefficient port operations and management, corruption and bureaucratic inefficiencies”.
He reiterated the need for the government to invest in modern technology, such as port management systems, to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance the overall port experience.
Also speaking, the President-General of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Adewale Adeyanju, said it would be difficult for the lives of workers working “in those dilapidated places to be safe”.
When contacted, the General Manager of Corporate and Strategic Communications of NPA, Ikechukwu Onyemekara, said the necessary documents have been submitted and that the rehabilitation will start by the second quarter of 2025.
He further noted that securing the loan had been done but noted that “when you secure a loan like that there are one or two documents which you are supposed to submit, and we have done that. So by the second quarter of this year, they (contractors) will mobilise to site”.
