Omiete Blessing
In continuation of his resolve to galvanize port concessionaires and terminal operators into increasing their In-Country investments in Port infrastructure equipment, Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, on Wednesday, tour the Onne and Rivers Port Complexes.
The visit is coming on the heels of his tour of Lagos Ports of Apapa and TinCan earlier on November 27, 2024.
The Lagos tour signposts the current administration’s readiness to deepen Nigeria’s competitiveness in vessel and cargo traffic to match the needs of Nigeria’s huge population of over 200 million inhabitants.
The tour in Rivers, covered BRAWAL Oil Services Ltd, Onne Multipurpose Terminal, INTELS, INDORAMA,West African Container Terminal (WACT) and NOTORE and the terminals at Rivers Port Complex Port Harcourt
Speaking during the tour, Dantsoho stressed that “with the quantum of investments our maritime neighbors especially along the West and Central African Coast are attracting.
“We can only stay competitive if we redouble our investment drive in order to provide requisite infrastructure and equipment to attract the sizes of vessels that scale up our cargo throughput to adequately serve our huge population.”
He said “As far as this Management is concerned we have the mandate of the Honourable Minister of Marine & Blue Economy Adegboyega Oyetola to create the enablers for increased investment, and we are poised to do just that.
“Let me seize this moment to reiterate my earlier plea to investors to take maximum advantage of the investor-friendliness of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR to infuse greater Investment and be assured of guaranteed return on investment.”
The NPA helmsman who was recently elected as the first ever Nigerian President of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA) stated that “the reality of Nigerian Ports processing Two Million Containers of cargo to service a population of over Two Hundred Million is an anomaly that has to be urgently addressed through deployment of huge investments.”