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The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, says the Federal Government is expanding Nigeria’s port infrastructure to position the country as a major trade and logistics hub in West and Central Africa.
Oyetola spoke on Monday while opening the Mid-Year Session of the Board of Directors of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The meeting, themed “Ports of the Future: Combining Logistical Resilience with Inclusive Community Development,” brought together maritime stakeholders from across the region.
The minister said the government had approved the construction of additional deep seaports to support trade, improve supply chains and boost the country’s competitiveness in the maritime sector.
According to him, the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is also focusing on port modernisation through infrastructure upgrades, digital reforms and improved efficiency at the nation’s seaports.
He said recent policy measures and collaboration among agencies had helped reduce delays at the ports, improve cargo movement and create a better business environment for investors and port users.
Oyetola described the National Single Window project as a key reform that would simplify cargo clearance through the digital integration of government agencies and port operations.
He added that existing ports would also undergo major upgrades, including channel deepening, to accommodate bigger vessels and increase trade capacity.
Speaking on maritime security, the minister said the Deep Blue Project had helped tackle piracy and reduce maritime crimes in Nigerian waters and the Gulf of Guinea.
He urged participants at the meeting to support policies that would strengthen logistics, encourage innovation and promote sustainable development in coastal communities.
In his welcome address, Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority and President of PMAWCA, Abubakar Dantsoho, said more than $27 billion worth of port projects were ongoing or recently announced across West and Central Africa.
He listed some of the projects to include the Simandou-Morebaya Deep Sea Port project in Guinea, Port San Pedro in Côte d’Ivoire, the Lekki Deep Sea Port, as well as ongoing developments at Apapa and Tin Can Island ports in Nigeria.
Dantsoho said ports in the region must go beyond cargo operations and support broader blue economy activities such as renewable marine energy, fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and marine biotechnology.
The event, scheduled to hold from May 18 to 20, 2026, was attended by several dignitaries, including Governor of Taraba State, Kefas Agbu, Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, Chairman of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, and Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman.
