By: Imo Thomas, Umuahia.
19 years prolonged delay in bringing the Isiala Ngwa Inland dry port (IDP) into operation after its conception is giving Governor Alex Otti sleepless night.
The Governor, made his feelings known on Wednesday, when officials of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council visited him in his office.
He called for urgent federal government’s intervention to address the infrastructure challenges stalling the operationalisation of the Isiala Ngwa Dry Port.
He said that the inability to operationalize the dry port is a major economic loss to the Nation and a clear sign that something fundamental was wrong with the implementation process of the project.
He noted that the absence of reliable rail connectivity is a key obstacle to the viability of the inland dry ports, saying that moving goods from the seaports to the IDPs requires the cheapest and most efficient mode of transportation which is rail.
“Isiala Ngwa IDP was well-positioned from the initial conceptualisation. But, for it to remain on the drawing table for 19 years, something is definitely wrong.
“The major problem is transportation. Until we solve that problem of rail, the inland port system will remain unviable.
“The cheapest way to move goods is through rail. You can freight them and pay more, but that’s not sustainable for business,” Otti stated.
Governor Otti appreciated the federal government’s ongoing investments in rail infrastructure, including the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri corridor, and pledged his willingness to work closely with federal authorities, including the Minister of Transport, to resolve the challenges. He also said that he was ready to travel to Abuja for further deliberations on the issue.
Speaking earlier, the Executive Secretary and CEO of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Dr. Akutah Pius Ukeyima, commended Governor Otti for his visionary leadership and commitment to the economic transformation of the State, describing Abia as a State strategically positioned to drive regional trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
He stressed the need for the State government to support the revival and full operationalisation of the Isiala Ngwa Inland Dry Port (IDP), a key project under Nigeria’s port reform programme.
Dr. Ukeyima said that the Isiala Ngwa Dry Port was gazetted in 2006 and concessioned to Eastgate Container Terminal Limited for a period of 30 years.
He said when fully operational, the dry port would provide direct access to global markets for Aba’s well-known industrial clusters and SMEs, generate thousands of jobs in logistics and related sectors, and boost the State’s ’s internally generated revenue.
He equally noted that the Isiala Ngwa IDP is strategically located to facilitate regional trade, cross-border logistics and serve as a transit hub for landlocked countries around Africa.
