Dantsoho Woos Investors For New Seaports, Says Lekki Port Capacity Exhausted

The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr Abubakar Dantsoho, has called on global investors to take advantage of Nigeria’s growing maritime sector, disclosing that the capacity of the Lekki Deep Sea Port has been exhausted barely three years after its commissioning.

Dantsoho made the call while showcasing Nigeria’s maritime investment opportunities and the investment-friendly policies of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration at the ongoing World Ports Conference in London.

Addressing a select team of maritime investors from across the world, the NPA managing director identified Nigeria’s growing population, rapid urbanisation, rising cargo volumes and infrastructure gaps as major opportunities for investment in the country’s port and maritime sectors.

He said the increasing demand for port services, driven by Nigeria’s expanding population and economic activities, had made the development of additional deep seaports and expansion of existing facilities imperative.

Dantsoho, who is also Vice-President of the International Association of Ports and Harbours (IAPH) and Chairman of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA), maintained that government alone could not provide the enormous capital required to develop bigger and deeper seaports across the continent.

He urged international investors to commit funds to Africa’s maritime sector, stressing that private-sector participation was critical to bridging the continent’s infrastructure deficit and meeting its growing cargo-handling requirements.

According to him, Nigeria’s population has increased significantly from 45 million at independence in 1960 to more than 260 million currently, creating enormous pressure on existing port infrastructure.

He said, “Nigeria at independence in 1960 had a population of 45 million people. Today, about 60 years later, there are more than 260 million people. The investment needed in ports to meet this expansion and growth can only happen if the requisite private investment is attracted and retained, which is what President Tinubu has created the enabling atmosphere for.

“In Nigeria, we identified that infrastructure gap, especially in our ports’ development, and we realised that we must do something quickly, both in terms of the capacity to receive bigger vessels for import and also the capacity to move higher numbers of cargo for export.

“Also, again, it is important to note that the development or growth or expansion in the area of infrastructure is capital-intensive. So, the governments in both West Africa and generally in Africa have realised that the government cannot fund development of bigger or deeper seaports, hence the need for your investment to move speedily into Africa.”

The NPA boss particularly cited the Lekki Deep Sea Port in Lagos as evidence of the urgent need for additional port infrastructure to accommodate Nigeria’s expanding cargo volumes.

He disclosed that the $1.6 billion facility, commissioned about three years ago, had already exhausted its existing capacity, underscoring the need for fresh investments in port development.

Dantsoho said, “Nigeria has the highest population in Africa. So, the speed of growth is something that really should concern us. For example, in Nigeria, only recently, about three years ago, we commissioned the first deep sea port in Nigeria, which is called Lekki Deep Sea Port, that was funded by the Chinese government in relationship with China Harbour, and the expenditure cost us $1.6 billion to build Lekki in Lagos.

“But as of today, just about three years later, the capacity of the new deep-sea port, that is Lekki, has been exhausted. So, which means that clearly, we need more capacity to be able to contain the volumes.

“And for us as Port Authority, we are happy that we are capturing more of the cargo, the volumes are going up, because that is the only way that we can also increase our value, the revenue that we expect to make from these transactions.”

He further explained that the investment opportunities extended beyond Nigeria to other West African countries, including Benin Republic, Togo, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, where growing trade activities were creating demand for modern port infrastructure.

However, he noted that Nigeria remained the dominant destination for cargoes entering the West African market because of its large population and consumer base.

According to him, the populations of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo and Benin Republic stand at approximately 34 million, 32 million, nine million and 14 million respectively, compared with Nigeria’s more than 260 million.

He said the size of Nigeria’s market meant that a significant proportion of cargoes shipped into the West African sub-region, particularly from China, ultimately ended up in the Nigerian market.

Dantsoho urged investors to leverage the region’s expanding trade volumes and untapped resources, stressing that strategic investments in port infrastructure would strengthen cargo-handling capacity, facilitate exports and improve the competitiveness of African economies.

He maintained that the Tinubu administration had created an enabling policy environment to attract and retain private capital in the maritime sector, urging investors to take advantage of the opportunities emerging from Nigeria’s growing economy and increasing demand for port services.