The Federal Government says it will develop inland waterways transportation to ensure seamless movement of cargoes by barges to their ports of destination.
The Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, gave the assurance in a statement by the ministry’s spokesperson, Mr Eric Ojiekwe, in Abuja.
The statement said the minister spoke at the ongoing 2022 ministerial retreat in Uyo.
Sambo said that the Federal Government was committed to opening up the routes to ensure easy movement of containers.
”We want to see containers and other cargoes in barges move from Lagos through the intra-coastal routes to the hinterlands,” he said.
The minister said that the process would involve the clearing the waterways, cannalisation and effective cannal management.
He said the ministry had commenced discussion with a company that was willing to commence work anytime in November.
”Our dream is to move containers from Marina in Lagos to Onitsha in Anambra, and even to Baru in Niger,” he said.
Sambo further stated that the implementation of the Lagos-Calabar coastal railway project was affected by paucity of funds.
He said the China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC), contractor handling the project, had not provided its 85 per cent counterpart funding.
”The Federal Government is to provide 15 per cent of the counterpart funding for that project.
”We are holding talks with an investor that is willing to provide the funds. We need to determine how to share the works between the investor and CCECC.
”The coastal rail line project is very important, it is one that connects all the port cities of Nigeria,” he said.
He said that by connecting all the port cities by rail, it would be easier to open up the Eastern Ports.