Hadiza Bala Usman, managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has called for sustainable efforts in maximising the opportunities inherent in the nation’s maritime sector.
Speaking at the second edition of the Nigeria and Entrepreneurship Summit and Honors (NESH) Maritime Roundtable held in Lagos with the theme “Harnessing the Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in the Nigerian Sub Sector,” Usman said the nation’s maritime sector can help in poverty reduction, wealth creation, skill promotion and acquisition as well as encouragement of entrepreneurship spirit.
According to her, maritime has the potential to contribute at least 10 percent to the GDP in no distant future because Nigeria has the biggest market in Africa.
Usman however pointed out the need to strengthen requisite skills for greater professionalism through funding and capacity building that would drive the development of maritime resources in the country.
She stated that the NPA in collaboration with the Nigerian Railway Corporation is seeking to increase railway’s market share in cargo evacuation from the ports, adding that the NPA is also collaborating with Inland Container Depots like Kaduna to achieve swift cargo evacuation to the hinterlands in the north.
She called for the effective management of the nation’s Greenfield which is expected to attract Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) and generate more revenue while enshrining the tenets of Private Public Partnership (PPP).
