Buhari to commission first dry port in Nigeria’s South South

The first of its kind in South South, the
Edo Inland Container Dry Port (Edo-ICD) is to be commissioned in
December by President Mohammadu Buhari.

 

Mr. Charles Akhigbe, the Project
Initiator, said in Benin City, the state capital that the project, in
its last stage of completion, would play host to four federal government
agencies for on the spot final assessment on September
17.

 

Mr Akhigbe said the federal agencies
would include Nigeria Shippers Council, Infrastructure Concession
Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and the Federal Ministries of Transport and
Finance.

 

He said the agencies would review, among
other things, work done so far on the project site and assess to the
project location in the bid to grant of final concession to the Atlanque
Marine Engineering Services (AMES), the promoters
of the project.

 

He said this would facilitate the
submission of a report to the Minister of Transport on the state of
readiness of the ICD to commence receiving containers as an import and
export dry port.

 

Mr Akhigbe said the ICD would help to decongest Lagos ports.

 

He also said it would create more than
15,000 direct and indirect jobs and serve as a one-stop shop for import
and export activities in the state in particular and the South South
region in general.