Determined to attract investors to finance projects that would see to the rehabilitation of decaying port infrastructure, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, the minister of transport, has taken investment opportunities in the port industry and other segments of the transportation sectors to foreign investors.
Presenting a paper on ‘Financing Nigeria’s Transport Infrastructure,’ at the just concluded Nigerian International Economic Partnership Forum held in the USA, Sambo said the port infrastructure has suffered dilapidation over the years and now requires massive capital investments for upgrade and rehabilitation.
According to him, Apapa and Tin-Can Island Ports, which account for about 70 percent of the nation’s maritime trade require private capital investments in the face of highly competing demands on the nation’s income flows.
He said the ports of Calabar and Warri also present investment opportunities in dredging in order to maintain a regular draught of about 7.5 meters.
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“The Ibom deep seaport in Akwa Ibom is in the fifth stage of the project development process – government approval and procurement stage. The Badagry deep seaport has recently been approved by the Federal Executive Council for construction by international private investors over three years on concession for 45 years on a Build, Own, Operate and Transfer basis,” he said.
Sambo said there are deep seaports at Bonny and Bakassi which present opportunities for private capital.
While inviting partners to take advantage of the ample opportunities with a promising return on investment and a secured environment for investors, Sambo said that poor maintenance and insufficient investments have put an enormous strain on transport infrastructure and services.
On river ports, he said opportunities exist in the concession of Oguta, Baro, and Lokoja ports just like the Onitsha port has already been concessioned to private investors.
According to him, opportunities also exist in the operation of ferry passenger and cargo services along the inland waterways corridor, and the development of additional river ports and jetties along navigable routes on Public Private Partnership arrangements.
He said there is also an opening in the development of tank farms along the inland waterway corridors to leverage the waterways for the carriage of petroleum and other bulk liquid cargoes to the hinterland.
The minister added that Nigeria is developing inland ports in Kano, Katsina, Aba, Ibadan, Jos, and Funtua, which lie opportunities for private capital investments in inland dry ports and rail networks targeted at the manufacturing, agriculture, and solid minerals base of the country.
