The federal government has said it is set to unlock the vast potential of the maritime sector as a key driver of national prosperity in line with Africa’s Agenda 2063.
The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, who made this disclosure in Lagos on Friday –Â today, February 14 – in an interactive session with Nigerian Guild of Editors, said “the vision of the Ministry is to ensure that the country’s marine resources are harnessed sustainably to position Nigeria as a premier maritime nation.”
To lay a solid foundation for that vision, the Ministry, through a multi-layered stakeholders’ engagement and consultation, has crafted a National Policy on Marine and Blue Economy, Oyetola, also the immediate past Governor of Osun State, disclosed, explaining that the policy document would soon be presented to the Federal Executive Council for approval.
Stating that the Ministry carries out its mandate through its agencies and has recorded significant achievements on many fronts, the Minister pointed out that one of such achievements came in the form of a recent approval for award of contract for the modernization of Western Ports (Lagos Ports Complex).
The procurement process for the Eastern Ports modernization is also being fast tracked, according to Oyetola, who disclosed that these projects are expected to generate over 20,000 jobs.
The Minister highlighted efforts being made in the development of greenfield port projects such as Badagry, Ilaje, Olokola, Agge, Ibaka, Burutu, Snake Island, Bakassi, Deep Seaports, river ports and jetties as well as development of Inland Dry Ports across the country to facilitate trade.
According to him, the Funtua Inland Dry Port in Katsina has been commissioned while Kaduna and Kano are supporting trade operations with those in Abia, Plateau and Borno States at various stages of completion.
Regarding ports operational efficiency, Oyetola noted that the Ministry’s policy reforms and agency implementations have yielded significant improvements in export volumes over the past two years, as evidenced by the positive trade balances reported by the National Bureau of Statistics due to reforms at the Export Terminals.
