02 March 2016, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Minister of Transportation, Mr Chibuike Amaechi, has praised the good intentions of government in bringing Public Private Partnership, PPP, to the nation’s ports, saying the development has bought efficiency to services at the ports.
Amaechi, who spoke at the two-day conference by the Maritime Correspondents Organisation of Nigeria in Lagos, maintained that there has also been a remarkable increase in cargo throughput and reduced cargo dwell time following the development.
According to him, the concessioning era has brought improved vessel turnaround time in addition to raising the quality of infrastructure at the ports.
But despite these, the minister stressed the need to position the ports to bring more business by making them more cost-effective, adding that the Federal Government was determined to ensure improved administration at the ports.
Highlighting the importance of the ports, Amaechi said: “As we know, seaports are entrances and exit gates through which the trade needs of transit and landlocked countries are met.
“The nation’s ports, therefore, provide the interface between land and sea and the most cost-effective mode of transportation’’.
