Dantosho tackles port access challenges, engages terminal operators

Determined to swiftly address stakeholders’ concerns over truck traffic congestion at the Apapa and TinCan Island Port Complexes, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, made an unscheduled visit to the Lagos Ports access roads on Monday.

Speaking during the spot check of critical operational arteries, Dantsoho said, “such unscheduled visits, which will be frequent, are motivated by our continuous improvement paradigm”.

“Although I have tasked the Port Managers to urgently resolve the areas of concerns raised by the trucking and freight forwarding community, I will continuously follow up directly to ensure compliance and measurable results.

“Traffic Management efficiency is a deliverable that we take very seriously, which is why beyond optimizing the electronic call-up (eto), we are working assiduously towards multimodal means of evacuation through barges and the rail lines. Specifically, we will work with Nigeria Customs to relocate the scanner sited on the rail line link in Apapa to facilitate seamless evacuation”.

“The Port access road is an international corridor, so we have  zero tolerance for traffic clogs that cause congestion. So we are poised to increasingly hold ourselves and everyone to account. First the automated access gates must work, we must shorten the SOPs to align with the necessity for quick transaction turnaround to remain competitive first with our peers in the region and internationally”.

On the sidelines of the visit, the NPA Chief Executive was received by Chairman Flour Mills Group, Mr. John Coumantaros and discussions focused on process improvement, increased investment in infrastructure and equipment necessary for Nigerian Ports to garner greater share of the market.

Coumantaros commended the investor-friendliness of the Tinubu administration.

Responding, Dantsoho said “let me seize this opportunity to commend the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy Adegboyega Oyetola for securing FEC approval for the commencement of actual works for reconstruction of TinCan Island and rehabilitation of challenged aspects of Apapa Port Complexes”.

Dantsoho further opined that “these positive developments coinciding with the Federal Government’s approval of the National Single Window (NSW) project signposts Nigeria’s readiness to berth large cargo carriers commensurate with the size of Nigeria’s population”.