The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has reported that the process of concessioning the Onitsha River Port had begun.
The Managing Director of NIWA, Dr George Moghalu, unveiled the plan during a chat at a stakeholders meeting in Lagos.
The meeting was between NIWA and key operators in maritime industry, dredging/inland waterways transportation and other related activities.
He said that the Onitsha and Baro Ports were completed, and plans were on to ensure they were fully functional.
According to Moghalu, the concessioning is to reduce to the barest the involvement of government in the management of the ports.
“Within my one year of stay, I want to make water transport the choicest transport in the country, and with the support of stakeholders, it can be achieved.
“The concessioning of the Onitsha River Port has started and we will be travelling to the Port of Antwerp for due diligence.
“Concessioning is a process and not an action, and so it will not augur well if a name is put out and at the end of the day, the person will not meet the criteria,”he said.
He said that the challenge facing the Baro Port was access road, and he was in discussion with the Niger State government and the Federal Ministry of Works on the way out of the problem.
Moghalu said that the Baro Port was a world class port, and Public Private Partnership or any investment would not take place if the road was not done.
While reeling out his achievements within four months as the NIWA boss, Moghalu said that he was making effort to ensure completion of the Oguta Port situated at Imo State, which was 60 per cent completed and had been abandoned.
He said that he was engaging with the Imo State government and other critical stakeholders to get free funds for the completion of the port.
The managing director said that NIWA was procuring additional dredgers and would be going into maintenance dredging.
He said that it would start standardising dredging in Lagos.
Moghalu said that NIWA was building a data base of all professional certified boat operators, with the aim of arresting persons or impounding boats when they fell short of expectations.
“NIWA is not well known, and so we are sensitising people, local communities with regards to our rules and regulations so that they don’t fall short of them.
“As regards enforcement, we have NIWA police and our task force is made up of the army and navy to help enforce rules.
“There have been defaulters, but some of them are ignorant of our regulations and this is why we are pleading with the media to help project what we do,” he said.
