ABDULLAH

Bakassi Deep Sea Port to Strengthen Nigeria’s Position as Maritime Gateway in West Africa – NPA The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr Abubakar Dantsoho, has said the Bakassi Deep Sea Port will significantly strengthen Nigeria’s position as a leading maritime gateway in West Africa and the African continent. He said the project, when completed, would transform Nigeria’s maritime landscape, boost regional trade, enhance connectivity with landlocked countries and attract greater investments into the nation’s blue economy. Dantsoho stated this in a goodwill message at the Presidential Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Bakassi Deep Sea Port held on Friday. According to him, the port is strategically designed to serve as a transformative maritime hub for Nigeria, the wider Gulf of Guinea and several countries in the Sahel region. He explained that the project, being developed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement and backed by a $3.5 billion facility from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), would have the capacity to accommodate Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs), reducing the need for frequent maintenance dredging. The NPA chief executive said the port’s strategic location and supporting infrastructure would provide a competitive advantage for Nigeria in the international shipping and logistics industry. He noted that, like the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, which is expected to improve connectivity and enhance port operations along the coastal corridor, the Bakassi Deep Sea Port would be supported by a dedicated 275-kilometre, six-lane Calabar-Ogoja-Gakem Superhighway. According to him, the superhighway would bypass urban bottlenecks and establish a high-capacity evacuation corridor linking the port to Nigeria’s North-Central and North-Eastern regions. He added that the road infrastructure would also position the port as a cost-effective transshipment gateway for landlocked countries, including Chad, Niger Republic, Mali and Burkina Faso. Dantsoho stressed that the strategic significance of the project was further reinforced by the enormous trade and economic potential of landlocked countries in the region. He said, “Africa accounts for 16 of the world’s 44 landlocked countries, with four located in West Africa. These include Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad, with a combined population of approximately 101 million people. “The Bakassi Deep Sea Port therefore presents an important opportunity to strengthen regional trade connectivity, facilitate access to international shipping routes and position Nigeria as a preferred maritime gateway for the wider West and Central African markets.” The NPA Managing Director emphasised the strong relationship between the size of a country’s economy, its population and the capacity of its seaports, noting that countries with large economies and populations often have major ports that serve as critical drivers of international trade. Drawing comparisons with other economies, he cited the United States, which combines a large population and strong economy with major maritime facilities such as the Port of Los Angeles in California. He also referenced Brazil, South America’s most populous country and largest economy, which is home to the Port of Santos, one of the continent’s leading maritime facilities. He said the NPA was working towards positioning Nigerian ports as the leading maritime facilities in Africa, adding that achieving this ambition required sustained investment in infrastructure, modern technology and operational efficiency. “The Brazilian experience offers an interesting comparison with Nigeria because both countries have ports with long histories. The Port of Santos is about 200 years old, while Apapa Port is approximately 100 years old. “These ports require continuous modernisation to meet the evolving demands of international shipping. This underscores the urgent need for Nigeria to modernise its existing brownfield ports while simultaneously developing greenfield deep-sea ports,” he said. Dantsoho commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his commitment to transforming the maritime sector through ongoing port modernisation, expansion and facilities upgrade projects. He said the investments in both the Western and Eastern Ports were critical to expanding capacity, improving operational efficiency and positioning Nigerian ports to accommodate larger vessels and compete favourably with leading ports across the world. “Please permit me to appreciate Mr President for the ongoing port modernisation projects in both the Western and Eastern Ports. Such investments are essential to expanding capacity, improving operational efficiency and repositioning Nigerian ports to accommodate Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs),” he said. The NPA boss congratulated President Tinubu, the Governor of Cross River State, Prince Bassey Edet Otu, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, and Nigerians on the milestone, describing the groundbreaking ceremony as a significant step towards unlocking the country’s maritime and economic potential. He reaffirmed the Authority’s commitment to working closely with the Cross River State Government, private-sector investors, technical partners, regulatory agencies and other stakeholders to ensure the successful delivery and operation of the project. Dantsoho assured that the NPA, under the supervision of the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, would uphold safety standards, environmental sustainability, operational guidelines and international best practices throughout the construction and eventual operation of the port. He expressed optimism that the Bakassi Deep Sea Port, alongside ongoing investments in existing port infrastructure, would strengthen Nigeria’s maritime competitiveness, facilitate regional integration, create economic opportunities and consolidate the country’s position as a major maritime and logistics hub in Africa.