Nigeria may lose its two major seaports to total infrastructure collapse as the Federal Government excludes Apapa and TinCan Island ports rehabilitation from the 2023 budget presented to the National Assembly last week.
The Federal Government allocated N126 billion to the Transport Ministry, out of which only N10 million is proposed for the implementation of strategies for the rehabilitation, ultilisation and patronage of Eastern ports.
Nothing is allocated for the rehabilitation of the two major seaports in Lagos State. The Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, had promised to facilitate the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the seaports, which are in a state of decay.
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said over $600 million was needed for the rehabilitation/reconstruction projects of seaports across the country. According to the Managing Director, Mohammed Bello-Koko, the seaports being considered for rehabilitation/reconstruction are Apapa, and Tin-Can Island, Calabar, Warri, Koko and Burutu ports.
“We are working towards requesting the government’s approval to use a certain per cent of our revenue to fund the reconstruction of Tin Can port,” he said. Also in the budget, N20 million is allocated for the assessment of agencies under the ministry of transportation, including the NPA, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron, and the Nigerian Shippers Council.
