The Lagos Area Manager, National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) Mr Joseph Ororo, has said that more than 10 private operators joined the ferry business in the last two years.
Ororo said this in an interview with newsmen in Lagos.
He said that the number of new entrants was still not enough as there was still room for more private operators to join.
“We are encouraging more and more people to take to the business because we want to free our roads of traffic menace and prevent wear and tear on our roads.
The Lagos Area Manager, National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) Mr Joseph Ororo, has said that more than 10 private operators joined the ferry business in the last two years.
Ororo said this in an interview with newsmen in Lagos.
He said that the number of new entrants was still not enough as there was still room for more private operators to join.
“We are encouraging more and more people to take to the business because we want to free our roads of traffic menace and prevent wear and tear on our roads.
“One of the challenges of the business is that it is capital intensive.
“ To put an ordinary fibre passenger boat with capacity for 25 passengers on the water costs between N3.5 million and N5 million.
“If it were on the road, an operator would have acquired more than two second-hand buses with the same amount,” the Lagos area manager said.
According to him, the profit margin for the private operator in Lagos is low and it is difficult to break even unlike in Port Harcourt and Bonny areas of Nigeria.
He attributed this to the fact that Lagosians had not really taken to water transportation as a substitute for road transportation.
Ororo said that NIWA in its task of providing an enabling environment had been sensitising the populace and investors about ferry operations through seminars and workshops.
“We encourage private operators by spreading the good news of water transportation.
“We also help to reduce whatever charges the operators are meant to pay the government by giving them tax relief or rebates to reduce their operational costs”.
He said that the authority was also particular about safety on the water.
Ororo said that NIWA had provided a well-equipped water ambulance with personnel to ensure safety of lives on the water.
He added that another challenge the private operators faced was high operational costs.
“If the average Lagosian has a good attitude to work, he or she will want to patronise the fastest means of transport that will ensure he or she gets to work early.
“However, it seems the average Lagosian can afford to waste precious man-hours in traffic, may be because no-one will discipline him for reporting late to work,” he said.
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