Nigeria, Niger Republic builds rail line to promote transshipment of cargo

The Federal Government said it has perfected arrangements to partner with the government of Niger Republic in the construction of a standard gauge rail line to connect Maradi in Niger Republic with Katsina State in Nigeria.

Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, minister of transportation, who disclosed this on Monday at the ongoing International Association of Ports and Harbours (IAPH) Africa Regional Conference in Abuja, said that the move constitute part of Nigeria’s efforts at promoting regional integration and trade between both nations.

Amaechi, who expressed fulfillment that the conference themed “African Ports & Hinterland Connectivity,” took place during the first opportunity that Nigeria, has to be vice President of African Region for the IAPH, said that the conference theme is in sync with this administration’s commitment to optimising the comparative advantage that Nigeria maritime endowments confers.

“This administration appreciates the importance of the maritime to trade facilitation. We also understand that optimising the potential is totally dependent on the efficient transportation of cargo from port locations into the various destination of use no matter how far-flung into the hinterland might be. We are therefore committed to the deployment of a multimodal system of transportation from all our ports,” he assured.

The minister said that the government’s commitment to this cause is evident in the rapid pace with which it’s pursuing the reactivation and extension of the railway networks to facilitate the ease of transporting cargo from Nigerian port locations to the hinterland.

“In terms of railway, work is already at advance stage on the realignment and re – modification of the national railway gauge lines and the revitalisation of the once moribund Kano express train.”

“Similarly, the Lokoja – Itakpe – Warri rail line started operations only a few months ago while the Port Harcourt – Aba – Maiduguri axis is being reconstructed to standard gauge to further open up the nation’s hinterland for market penetration.

According to him, this move was prompted by the development of dry ports in Kano and Kaduna with direct rail connection, which has enabled ease of cargoes and containers transit to the Northern Nigeria, and to Chad and Niger Republic in order to promote transshipment of cargoes to the neighboring countries.

“In furtherance of government’s determination to create an efficient multimodal transport system and to improve inland connectivity for effective cargo movement, the inland waterways are being revitalised as alternative to existing modes of transportation. Currently, inland river channels are being dredged starting from the River Port in Onitsha up to the northern region of Lokoja in Kogi and Baro in Niger states with adequate channel markings for ease of navigation,” Amaechi explained.

Amaechi, who disclosed that export cargo such as solid minerals like manganese and agricultural produce are already being exported out of Nigeria from the Ikorodu Lighter Terminal (KLT) through barges on the shallow lagoon extending to the Apapa Port in Lagos, stated that work has commenced on remodeling the existing narrow gauge rail lines on the Apapa corridor of the Lagos – Ibadan rail network into standard gauge for seamless transportation of people and goods.

The project, he noted, is being handled by China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC) is progressing at a rapid pace.

However, the minister assured that the Lagos-Ibadan rail network would be commissioned later this year or early next year, adding that the construction work is progressing at a rapid pace.

Hadiza Bala-Usman, managing director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), said that ensuring railway operations is the singular way to decongest the ports. “So long as we have all the cargo playing the roads, we will continue to have congestion. We want to make our respective governments understand that prioritising hinterland connection is paramount for any port to be operational and efficient.

“We recently got the president to give a directive that the ongoing rail rehabilitation and expansion are linked to all the ports across the country. We have made submissions to the Ministry of Works to prioritise the linkage of access roads to the port locations, and has also notified them of the need to have utilisation of inland waters using barges, ensuring that the Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) prioritises its operational capacity in dredging some of the river ports to ensure importers have routs to move their cargo,” she added.

Uzoamaka Anagor-Ewuzie