The Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Ms Hadiza Bala Usman has promised to boost the nation’s economy through the provision of infrastructure and technologically up-to-date equipment at the ports.
The Federal Government through the NPA, she said, would reposition the ports industry to play its key role as the gateway to the nation’s economy.
Speaking at the Executive Business Networking Seminar organised by NIMPORT in Lagos yesterday, Ms Usman who was represented by the General Manager, Public Affairs, Chief Michael Kayode Ajayi said the government was making efforts to reposition the ports in line with global trends.
Ms Usman has therefore directed all terminal operators to invest more in up-to-date equipment that would make the nation’s sea ports competitive and efficient.
Growth in trade volumes, she said, was a strong factor in the need for port investment to boost efficiency, build robust, responsive and competitive port economy in tune with global best practices.
Development and upgrading existing port infrastructure as well as improvement in performance, she said, had become imperative.
NPA’s vision, Usman said, was to be the leading port in Africa.
NPA, she said, would review, in line global best practices, the agreement the terminal operators entered into with the Federal Government before the ports were concessioned to them in 2006.
In countries like North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, she said, growing container market had led to incremental upgrade of the existing port infrastructure with container handling automation already put in place to handle large carriers with up to 18,000 teu.
This, she said, became imperative because manually operated RuberTyre Gantry (RTG) cranes were no longer suitable to handle huge volume of containers from one vessel.
NPA, she said, must lead in modernisation of equipment and infrastructure to respond to global trends in shipping business.
She thanked the organisers of the seminar for their steadfast and consistency which have gone a long way in fostering mutually beneficial business relationship between the government and the private operators in the maritime sector.
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