Lagos-Onitsha barge operations: NIWA yet to move containers after licensing of eight firms
By Seun Ibiyemi
Barely eight months after the Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), George Moghalu, announced plans by the agency to move 1,000 containers from Lagos to Onitsha via barges after licensing eight firms, the agency is yet to move a single container.
Investigations show that despite the over flooding of the Lagos ports with containers and the need to decongest the ports through alternative means of cargo evacuation, issues surrounding long voyage time and insecurity seem to have nailed the NIWA efforts at utilising the inland waterways from Lagos to Onitsha as many cargo owners have vowed to stick to road haulage of containers.
Despite the announcement in October 2020, by the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) that the agency would be evacuating about a thousand containers from the Lagos ports to Onitsha via barges and the subsequent licensing of eight firms to carry out that assignment, the move seems to be hanging in the balance over the refusal of shippers and importers to consent to their cargoes being moved by barges from Lagos to Onitsha.
Speaking with Nigerian NewsDirect, NIWA General Manager, public Affairs, Jibril Dadau said that “The MD has been dialoguing with stakeholders involved in this arrangement. You know we don’t own the cargoes. We don’t own the goods, so the MD has been talking to all the business men in the South East through their Chairman who is from Nnewi, the same town with our MD.
“The MD has been discussing with them (businessmen) to release their cargoes for the test run of the Lagos to Onitsha barge operation. However, some of them have expressed their fears to the MD about the safety of their cargoes.
Others talked about security issues, particularly in the Niger Delta area, from Burutu to Onitsha
The MD has been meeting with the major security agencies and has also been meeting with some Niger Delta youth groups. The MD wants them to be part of the exercise so that it will be devoid of any issues.
“We are determined to do it. NIWA is focused on achieving this feat, and that is why the MD has set up committees to continue to liaise with critical stakeholders. I don’t have the report of such meetings yet, but I know that there have been engagements towards achieving this feat.
Recall that the President of SALS, Reverend Jonathan Nicol explained that he already informed NIWA that such effort could only work maybe in the future when the environment becomes conducive for such ventures.
According to Reverend Nicol, “If you look at the number of days that it will take to move a container from Lagos to Onitsha by road and then also calculate the number of days that it will take to move container from Lagos to Onitsha by barges, you will realise that the risk associated with going by water is not worth it. I have told NIWA that it is a blind adventure.
