West African Ports Central To Global Economic Survival – NPA

The managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Abubakar Dantsoho, has said that the resilience and efficiency of ports in West and Central Africa are critical to the sustainability of the global economy.

Dantsoho stated this on Sunday ahead of the Board of Directors meeting of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA), scheduled to hold in Lagos from May 18 to 20, 2026.

The high-level meeting, hosted by the Nigerian Ports Authority, is expected to attract maritime leaders and port administrators across the sub-region to deliberate on strategies to improve port operations, strengthen logistics systems, and deepen regional maritime cooperation.

The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, is expected to formally open the meeting.

Speaking ahead of the gathering, Dantsoho, who is also the first Nigerian to serve as President of PMAWCA, said ports remain central to global trade flows and economic stability.

“The meeting affords us all, as chief executives and stakeholders, the platform to reiterate the pivotal role that ports play in shaping the future of humanity,” he said.

He noted that ports continue to serve as gateways to prosperity, linking nations to international markets while driving economic integration and sustainable development.

According to him, “With ports serving as gateways of prosperity and linking nations to the international community, their demonstrated leadership in advancing sustainable development goals cannot be overemphasised.”

The NPA boss stressed that global economic sustainability is closely tied to port performance, particularly in developing regions where infrastructure and logistics efficiency remain crucial to trade competitiveness.

He assured that the Nigerian Ports Authority would provide a conducive environment for productive engagements that would yield actionable policy directions for strengthening maritime cooperation across the region.

The PMAWCA meeting is expected to focus on port security, infrastructure development, trade facilitation, and strategies for building future-ready ports amid evolving global economic challenges.

It will also review midterm committee activities and assess progress on collaborative initiatives among member ports, reinforcing Nigeria’s leadership role in the regional maritime sector.