Economy
Buhari, Sanwo-Olu Say New Port, Rice Mill Will Drive Economy
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday inaugurated the 16.5 metres deep Lekki Sea Port and the Imota Rice Mill in Ikorodu, in Lagos.
President Buhari, who arrived at the venue in a helicopter alongside the Governor of the state, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, cut the ceremonial tape at the port at 4.42 pm.
The President, thereafter, proceeded on a brief drive-through inspection of the project.
The Lekki Deep Sea Port is a multipurpose sea port at the heart of the Lagos Free Zone, poised to be the most modern and deepest seaport in West Africa. Its promoters have said it would improve efficiency and serve as a major driver for economic growth in the region.
It offers critical support to flourishing commercial operations in Lagos state, across Nigeria, and the entire West African region. The port is ideally positioned to service the gateway for Nigeria and the surrounding West African region.
Speaking after President Buhari cut the tape, Mr Sanwo-Olu said the multi-billion naira project was a collaboration between the federal government, the Lagos state government and the private sector stakeholders.
Mr Sanwo-Olu described the project as the biggest infrastructure in the whole of West Africa, which would surely generate thousands of jobs in the country.
He said the execution of the project took off under Buhari’s administration and was completed during the President’s tenure, a milestone to be proud of.
The governor, therefore, thanked the President for his commitment to the development of the country and appreciated all those who contributed immensely to bringing the project to reality.
Prior to the arrival of the President, the State Commissioner for Commerce, Industry, and Cooperatives, Mrs Lola Akande, had in a speech said that the Deep Sea Port would complement other ports in the country.
Mrs Akande said that the port would further deepen Lagos’ position as an investment hub in Nigeria.
In a remark, the Managing Director of Lekki Port, LFTZ Enterprise, Mr Du Rougang, thanked the host community for their cooperation.
Mr Rougang said that the organisation would continue to work with relevant government agencies toward the growth of the economy.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
