Bello-Koko: Tinubu’s Policies Will Make Maritime Sector Nigeria’s Economic Mainstay

Oluchi Chibuzor

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mohammed Bello Koko has stated that policies of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu which has been applauded globally, will make the maritime sector Nigeria’s economic mainstay soon.

He said the policies are responsible for the transformation of the maritime industry and massive improvement in revenue generation by the Authority.

Koko who stated who made this assertion during an unscheduled visit to the Lagos  ports access roads whose decade-long traffic gridlock was recently cleared by the NPA, praised the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola’s leadership and hands on approach to driving the industry.

As part of president Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, he said the sanity that has since returned to the ports access roads will be sustained to promote ease of doing business and drive exports to enhance Nigeria’s balance of trade.

He added that despite global economic headwinds that characterized the year 2023, the Nigerian Ports Authority, succeeded in maintaining momentum to surpass its sterling performance of the year 2022.

According to him, “The implementation of continuous performance improvement measures resulted in unprecedented revenue generation and remittances to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) of the Federation, with revenues steadily growing from N361 billion in 2022 to N501 billion as at December 2023; and remittances increasing from N93.4 billion in 2022 to N131.2 billion by year end 2023″.

The NPA helmsman who was recently named by Mr. President on the implementation committee of the National Single Window Project added that, “taxes paid the Government of the Federation also grew at various times in the period under review up to $77.7 million and N17.6 billion respectively.” 

The foregoing, he said, added to strategic forecasts set to be actualised in 2024 such as the $1 billion worth reconstruction of Tincan Island Port Complex and the comprehensive rehabilitation of Apapa, Rivers, Onne, Warri and Calabar Port Complexes, New Ports Developments viz; Badagry Deep Seaport, Snake Island, Burutu and Ondo Deep Seaports, the Port Community System (PCS) and the National Single Window amongst other initiatives for port competitiveness being aggressively implemented, it is evident that the Nigerian Ports Authority has been positioned to not only create but sustain superior performance necessary to maximize the comparative advantages that Nigeria’s maritime endowments confer.