The spectre of articulated vehicles clogging roads and sometimes containers toppling over as a consequence of evacuating cargo from the Nigeria Lekki Deep Seaport have been allayed by the Governor of the state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. He said a six-lane road will take care of the expected traffic and evacuation of goods from the port. Sanwo-Olu gave the assurance at the handover of the Nigeria Lekki Deep Seaport construction completion ceremony on Monday in Lagos.
The Lagos State Governor affirmed government’s commitment to timely delivery of the road infrastructure around the Ibeju-Lekki axis to ensure seamless evacuation of cargo from the port. “The seaport will position Lagos as the world maritime logistics hub, not only in West Africa but Central African region and will position Nigeria to attain full economic leadership potential under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement. We, therefore, reassure everyone that we will stop at nothing to put the roads into completion as fast as possible to avoid any gridlock. We are urging the host community to remove all shanties on the road as the road will be turned into a six-way highway,” he said
Mr Biodun Dabiri, the Chairman, Lekki Port Board of Directors, noted that the project was a poster child for how effective global cooperation and collaboration could bridge the infrastructural gap in Nigeria. He appreciated the Government of China, which enabled China Harbour Engineering Company, China Development Bank to invest in Lekki Port, and President Muhammadu Buhari for providing an environment conducive for the investment to flourish. “We are pleased to celebrate the completion of construction of the port and the effective handover of the facilities by Lekki Port from the EPC Contractor, China Harbour Engineering LFTZ Enterprise, a subsidiary of China Harbour Engineering Company.
“It has been a long journey of many steps. Starting from the time when Tolaram sought to develop a deep sea port for the benefit of the Lagos Free Zone (LFZ), and indeed all of Lagos State and Nigeria. And to getting concession from the Nigerian Ports Authority for a unique private public partnership port; getting a loan facility from China Development Bank to the infusion of equity capital in the sum of US$221 million,” he said.
Dabiri noted that the Lekki Deep Sea Port would contribute immensely to the growth of the Nigerian economy when fully inaugurated. “The port will create about 170,000 direct and indirect jobs, generating approximately $361 billion during the period of the concession, and over $201 billion in revenue for both Lagos State and the Federal Government of Nigeria. The draft of 16.5 metres, means it can accommodate larger vessels which will automatically make Nigeria the trans-shipment hub of the region,” he said.
The Lekki Port is expected to ease the difficulties that businesses face when using the nation’s premier port in Apapa. Clearance of cargo is a cumbersome process, leading to the accumulation of demurrage. This is in addition to the poor state of road infrastructure in the Apapa axis.
Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.
