President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed hope that with the presence of dry ports in the country the problem of congestion and gridlock associated with seaports will be eliminated.
The president made this remark on Wednesday while commissioning the Kaduna Inland Dry Port.
He added that the facility would also reduce the cost of transportation and general cost of doing business.
His words: “With the full complement of the seven Dry Ports, congestion at the seaport and gridlock in the port complex will be eliminated. Consequently, the cost of transportation and therefore cost of doing business will be reduced.”
He called for the completion of other similar facilities to enable them complement the one just inaugurated.
“I congratulate the Kaduna State Government, the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Nigerian Shippers’ Council and indeed the hinterland importers and exporters on this epoch making occasion.
“In addition to the Kaduna Inland Dry Port, six other Inland Dry Ports in Ibadan, Aba, Kano, Jos, Funtua and Maiduguri, which have also been gazetted, are at various stages of completion.
“I commend the initiative of Nigerian Shippers’ Council towards promoting the provision of these modern transport infrastructural facilities and urge the Concessionaires of the other six Dry Ports to emulate the Concessionaires of the Kaduna Dry Port by accelerating work on theirs so that, in the next few months, they too can be commissioned,” he said.
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The president however said the benefits of the facility could only be enjoyed if the Customs and ports officials allowed it to work.
“Make these facilities work this time,” he stressed.
According to him, “it remains for Customs and Ports officials to make the facilities work and not to frustrate business, commercial and industrial enterprises with unnecessary bureaucracy and inflicting on them delays and hardships, thereby defeating the object of the whole exercise as has happened in the past.”
Speaking on the importance of the facility, the president said it was necessary to ease the way of doing international business for the interior based importers and exporters.
He said as ports of origin for exports and ports of destination for imports, the Inland Dry Ports would accelerate the implementation of the country’s economic diversification policy.
“The concept of Inland Dry Port has gained widespread importance with the tremendous changes in international transportation as a result of the container revolution and the introduction of door-to-door delivery of cargo.
“It provides importers and exporters located within the nation’s hinterland, especially industrial and commercial outfits, access to shipping and port services without necessarily visiting the seaports.”
He added that it would enables them to process clearance of their import cargo and take delivery of their raw materials and machinery close to their places of business among other benefits.
