Expert: Eastern Ports Can Generate Massive Revenue, Jobs if Properly Developed

By Mike Mboye, PortHarcourt.

A maritime expert, Dr. Babalola James, has said Nigeria’s eastern seaports possess enormous potential to generate substantial revenue and create thousands of jobs if they are adequately developed and effectively supported by government.

James, who is the Secretary of the Rivers and Bayelsa Shippers Association, stated this in an interview with journalists in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.

He said the eastern ports,Port Harcourt, Warri, Calabar, Onne, Sapele and Koko,remain grossly underutilised, largely due to political factors and the absence of deliberate policies to encourage their use.

According to him, there is a clear lack of political will to promote and guarantee sustained patronage of the eastern ports, despite their strategic importance to the national economy.

James explained that the geographical location of the ports also presents operational challenges, noting that most of them are situated within creeks, unlike the Lagos ports which are located on the open sea.

The former spokesperson of the Shipping Trade Practitioners Association of Nigeria further lamented that much of the infrastructure at the eastern ports is obsolete and in a dilapidated state, making them less attractive to investors and shippers.

He urged the Federal Government to introduce incentives capable of drawing shippers and private investors to the ports, adding that improved infrastructure would significantly boost port activities.

James stressed the need for Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to put the eastern ports in proper structure following a visit by the United States Coast Guard.

According to him, Lagos ports were adopted as a case study during the visit, and all recommendations made were fully implemented there, while similar attention was not extended to the eastern ports.

Despite the infrastructural challenges, he noted that the eastern ports still contribute substantially to government revenue.

He said millions of dollars and trillions of naira from port-related activities are paid into the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account (TSA) annually.

James stressed that with proper dredging of channels, rehabilitation of berths and modernisation of facilities, revenue generation would increase significantly, while employment opportunities would expand across the Niger Delta region.

He described the eastern ports as critical to Nigeria’s economic diversification and called for urgent intervention, particularly extensive dredging of ports in Delta State and parts of the Port Harcourt Port Complex where low draft levels have continued to hinder operations.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.