General
FG Gives Conditions for Sustainable Port Development
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has revealed its position to discourage unsolicited port development proposals that are not based on viable projects and future developments contained in the infrastructure development plan of the government under the National Transport Policy and programmes of agencies under the sector.
This is coming as the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) embarks on the process of developing a port development master plan that would set out the policy on port infrastructure development to match the current and future economic expectations/national goals and objectives.
The Minister of Transportation, Mr Mu’azu Jaji, in his presentation titled How To Streamline The Qualification Process To Encourage The Construction Of New Ports By States For A Sustainable Nigerian Blue Economy at the recent Niger Delta Blue Economy Investment Forum confirmed that the government had received unsolicited proposals some of which were initiated by state governments including the Lekki Port which was prior to the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Act, 2005.
He said, “Unsolicited proposals from state governments must undergo the required due diligence and procedures for constructing new ports. There is no shortcut to the process. Federal agencies also need to reduce the red-tape bureaucracies to make the process easy and seamless, observing the tenets of the ease-of-doing-Business, in order to attract Foreign Direct Investments.”
He noted that over the years, it had been observed that the bane of port development in Nigeria had been the absence of a Port Master Plan, which explained the number of unviable ports as well as urban encroachment to the port environment.
“A good example is the Lagos Ports with the attendant congestion along the port corridors. This development comes with its concomitant negative consequences on port efficiency and at a cost. This must be guarded against in future developments,” he said.
“Port development must be preceded by rigorous studies to determine both technical and economic viability. This is the only way by which we can move on the path of a sustainable Blue Economy,” he added.
The port development masterplan by the NPA was conceived to identify the gaps in infrastructure capacity; make projections on needed growth to address the capacity deficiency; and plan future development to ensure that port development is spaced out in time and over locations to ensure in time development, technology is up to date, avoid overcapacity that could result in unviable ports as in (Delta cluster of ports in the 1970s), ensure competition, and achieve economic growth, among other policy objectives.
The Minister acknowledged the legal framework governing the operation of ports in the country as in the Exclusive Legislative List contained in Part 1 of the Second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution such that all Nigerian Ports are Federal Ports with no provision for private ownership of ports in Nigeria, however, with the enactment of the ICRC Act, 2005, a window has been opened for the participation of the private sector in port development through Public-Private Partnerships arrangement.
While no private ownership of the port is currently contemplated by the country’s laws, current port development processes involve submitting a proposal for development (solicited or unsolicited), developing an outline business case and the final business case containing technical and financial details and obtaining all necessary approvals to proceed, granting of a concession for port development and operations by the Federal Government; and executing a concession agreement containing details of the concessions – performance parameters, financial provisions, technical standards, concession period (which takes into account the recoupment period, construction period and actual port operations period, reversionary rights and other relevant provisions).
Mr Jaji believed that the emergence of the PPP processes had further streamlined the qualification process for private participants in the blue economy.
“This was an enabler that made it possible for the state governments to be major promoters in the emergence of Deep Sea Ports in Nigeria. Every port has both the waterfront and the backup land area, which is within the legislation of the federal government, while the latter is within that of the state since the Certificate of Occupancy is being given by the state government,” he stated.
The Minister also acknowledged that the Blue Economy concept had developed as a sound paradigm for the comprehensive and sustainable management of marine and coastal areas and their natural resources.
He said, “Considering that Blue Economy includes activities such as fishing which involves the use of vessels/crafts that call at waterfront terminals or jetties, there is also a framework for licensing facilities in this category. This could be through the grant of jetty licenses or the designation of existing terminals as fishing terminals.
“One such process which is ongoing is for the designation of KLT I in Lagos as a fishing terminal with the hope that others will follow across the country. It needs to be stated that fishing terminals are ports used for vessel calls, just like any other facility. The involvement of NPA in this situation is the provision of the facility while the fishing activity is regulated under a different sector.
“Coherent and optimized co-existence of all sectors of activity is needed while preserving the quality of ecosystems, goods, and services in the long term.
“The Port plays a pivotal role in the development of the Blue Economy as the interface between maritime and terrestrial space.”
While acknowledging that Ports are the epicentre of many aspects of the Blue Economy, including:, tourism and leisure, fishing, aquaculture, offshore renewable energy, marine conservation, coastal protection, shipbuilding, oil, and gas, he said any call for streamlining the qualifications process for the development of new ports in a Blue Economy would be factually inaccurate with the assumption that there was hitherto no uniform standards for the qualification of new port developers.
Rather, he said the emergence of a Blue Economy would only introduce another layer or layers of qualification for new ports and facilities.
“The aspect of the Blue Economy recently introduced only added another layer or layers of qualification that had not been in existence since issues relating to the environment and its impacts on port development is a relatively recent phenomenon,” he said.
“The requirement for Environmental and Social Impact and Assessment studies in capital projects, including port infrastructure, is a relatively new concept in these climes.
“It is simply required as a major qualification that the developers of new ports MUST show how such developments will impact all aspects of the ocean, including diversity, environmental protection, commerce, the lives of members of the host communities, and the improvement of the economic prosperity of the country through the oceans,” he noted.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Economic Council (NEC) has approved a $4.5 billion arrangement for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited aimed at strengthening the country’s external reserves and freeing up funds for infrastructure.
This is part of the refinancing of the $3.3 billion Project Gazelle Pre-Export Finance Facility through a new $4.5 billion facility named “Project Gazelle 2”.
The approval allows NNPC Limited to refinance the outstanding balance of approximately $1.5 billion under the original 2023 facility, while unlocking an additional $3 billion in liquidity to strengthen the country’s external reserves and support ongoing fiscal and infrastructure priorities of the government.
NEC’s approval followed a presentation by the Minister of Finance, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, which was presented by the Chairman of the Council, Vice President Kashim Shettima, underscoring the importance of the project.
NEC observed the significance of unlocking additional liquidity to the federation, among other benefits, pledging its support for the actualisation of the initiative.
The Finance Minister explained that the refinancing has been structured on more favourable terms than the original facility, including a reduction in the volume of pledged crude oil from 90,000 barrels of oil per day to approximately 78,750 barrels of oil per day – a 12.5 per cent reduction.
He noted that under the new arrangement, an additional 11,250 barrels of oil per day for the federation will be released, while there will be a reduction in the pledged crude volumes by the state oil company.
Mr Oyedele added that while accessing additional liquidity on improved terms, the arrangement is freeing up resources for strategic national priorities while strengthening the country’s financing structures.
“The arrangement is freeing up resources for strategic national priorities while strengthening the country’s financing structures,” he said.
VP Shettima called for a responsive, scalable, and data-driven social protection policy to tackle multidimensional poverty in Nigeria.
According to Mr Shettima, government policies are often heard before they are seen, speak through the price of food, condition of hospitals, records in schools, strain on families, the confidence of those who invest their labour in the nation’s future, and, very importantly, the ambitions of state governments.
He implored members of Council to ensure that every decision they make assure the citizens “that their government is paying attention to the pulse of the nation and is resolved to respond with competence, compassion and purpose.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Members of the public have been invited to submit memoranda and policy proposals on the proposed National Policing Bill.
The Chairman of the Working Group, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, announced this on Monday after the team’s meeting at the State House in Abuja.
The group, headed by the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, is calling for input from Nigerians as part of efforts to establish a comprehensive legal and operational framework for state policing.
It is reviewing the Police Act 2020, the Police Service Commission framework, police regulations, and other relevant laws to support the development of an effective, modern policing system.
The proposed framework will set national minimum standards, define state readiness and grant certification, clarify jurisdictional responsibilities, ensure independent oversight, uphold human rights, and guarantee sustainable funding. It would also spell out an orderly transition to a dual-policing structure.
The call for memoranda will run for two weeks, allowing citizens, professionals, civil society, security agencies, state and local governments, academics, and other stakeholders to contribute. Submissions will be reviewed and integrated into the draft bill, which will then be subject to further national consultation before being finalised and sent to the National Assembly.
The Working Group has adopted a seven-week work programme running from July 27 to September 14, 2026. The draft Executive Bill is scheduled for presentation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on September 3, 2026, with national consultations to follow before the final approval.
The new National Policing Bill will set out requirements for recruitment, training, oversight, funding, and transition arrangements to ensure credible, effective, and accountable policing nationwide.
“A proposed State Police Service must demonstrate that it has credible arrangements for recruitment, vetting, training, pay, pensions, equipment, custody, complaints, discipline, data, firearms control, independent oversight and financial sustainability before it begins policing,” Mr Gbajabiamila said.
The representative of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, who described State Police as a landmark reform, described the initiative as one of the defining reforms of President Tinubu’s administration.
Responding to concerns about federal overreach, he clarified that there is no Federal attempt to control State Police. He added that the proposed legislation is intended to provide an operational framework rather than centralise control.
Prince Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, said the proposed National Policing Bill is designed to guarantee the security of lives and property while ensuring that the establishment of state police does not become a tool for political persecution.
The Attorney-General added that states not immediately ready to establish their own police services would continue to benefit from the presence of the Federal Police until they meet the required standards.
Other participants at the meeting included the Inspector General of Police, Tunji Disu; President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Afam Osigwe; Chairman, Policy Advisory Committee, Justice Abdullahi Liman (rtd); Professor Olu Ogunsakin, Head, Nigeria Police Reform Secretariat; Senior Special Assistant to the President on Planning and Research, Nnadubem Moghalu; and Brigadier General Olutayo Muyiwa Adesuyi, representing the National Security Adviser.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) says it recorded a 30 per cent reduction in gas imbalance on the country’s Western Network following the conclusion of its first-half 2026 Nigerian Gas Network Reconciliation (NGNR) Workshop.
The workshop brought together gas transporters, suppliers, shippers and off-takers to reconcile gas volumes traded between January and June 2026, while introducing a Network Entry/Exit Point Measurement Infrastructure Audit Template aimed at improving metering accuracy and accountability across the gas transmission network.
In a communiqué issued after the workshop, the authority said participants also reviewed the performance of the Nigerian Gas Transmission Network, assessed progress on major pipeline infrastructure projects, and received updates on the ELPS Gas Shrinkage Factor and Hydraulic Modelling Project.
Discussions focused on addressing metering gaps, improving network visibility through Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) integration, and enhancing system reliability ahead of the commissioning of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Pipeline System.
The workshop adopted key resolutions, including the execution of outstanding Network Exit Agreements, mandatory submission of measurement audit templates and closer collaboration among industry stakeholders to improve network pressure management.
Speaking at the closing session on behalf of the authority’s chief executive, Mr Rabiu A. Umar, the Director of Transportation Systems and Networks, Mr Joseph G. Musa, said the biannual reconciliation exercise had become critical to promoting equitable gas transactions, transparency, investor confidence and efficient network operations.
Mr Musa noted that since the NGNR process was introduced in 2023, it had significantly improved gas measurement, strengthened regulatory compliance through consequence management, reduced operational imbalances and contributed to a more reliable domestic gas supply.
The workshop concluded with participants adopting the reconciled H1 2026 gas volumes, reaffirming the authority’s commitment to a transparent, efficient and reliable domestic gas market.
