By Oluyinka Onigbinde
More than two decades after the Federal Government envisioned the Inland Dry Port (IDP) initiative to decongest the nation’s seaports and bring cargo clearance closer to businesses in the hinterland, the idea has remained largely unrealised as poor road infrastructure, inadequate rail connectivity and security challenges continue to undermine the projects.
Investigations by Shipping Position Daily show that although the Inland Dry Ports were conceived as strategic logistics hubs to facilitate imports and exports, reduce pressure on Lagos ports and cut the cost of transporting cargo across the country, only the Kaduna Inland Dry Port KIDP) has recorded a measure of commercial activity. Several others—including the Dala Inland Dry Port in Kano, Isiala Ngwa Inland Dry Port in Abia, Jos Inland Dry Port in Plateau, Funtua Inland Dry Port in Katsina and the Erunmu Inland Dry Port in Oyo State—have either suffered prolonged delays or remain unable to operate at their full potentials.
The Inland Dry Port scheme was developed to serve as an extension of the seaports, allowing importers to clear cargo closer to their businesses instead of travelling to Lagos.
Under the arrangement, containers arriving at Apapa or Tin Can Island ports would be transported by rail to the inland facilities, where Customs clearance and cargo delivery would be completed. The IDPs were to also assume the status of ports of destination.
However, industry stakeholders say the absence of an efficient rail freight system has fundamentally weakened the concept, leaving most cargo being transported by road at enormous financial and operational costs.
The Kaduna Inland Dry Port, commissioned in 2018 and designated as Nigeria’s first inland port with full port status, remains the country’s flagship Inland Dry Port. While it has handled import and export cargo over the years, operators say its performance has been constrained by irregular rail services, forcing many importers to continue relying on road haulage.
The situation is even more challenging for other Inland Dry Ports.
The Dala Inland Dry Port, strategically located in Kano to also serve the commercial activities of the North-West, was expected to boost trade for manufacturers, exporters and agricultural producers. Yet years after its conception, the facility has struggled to realise its objectives due largely to inadequate transport infrastructure.
Similarly, the Isiala Ngwa Inland Dry Port in Abia State was designed to support the industrial clusters in Aba and improve export logistics for manufacturers in the South-East. However, inadequate connectivity has limited its impact.
The Jos Inland Dry Port, expected to serve agricultural producers and mining operators in the North-Central region, has also faced significant implementation challenges, while the Funtua Inland Dry Port, conceived to support agricultural exports from the North-West, continues to await the infrastructure required to drive sustainable operations.
In Oyo State, the Erunmu Inland Dry Port was expected to complement economic activities in the South-West by providing manufacturers and exporters with easier access to port services. However, like many others, its success depends largely on efficient rail evacuation from the Lagos ports.
Checks by Shipping Position Daily indicate that despite government investments in rail modernisation, freight operations remain limited.
Speaking with our correspondent, the Deputy Director, Marketing and Commercial of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Mr. Yemi Odunowo, disclosed that the corporation currently operates freight services on only a few routes.
“Presently, it’s only to Ibadan, Ijoko in Ogun State, Papalanto in Ogun State and different areas in Lagos State,” he said.
According to him, the corporation’s movement of cement to Ilorin originates from Lafarge’s facility at Ewekoro rather than from the Lagos ports.
His explanation further confirmed the absence of dedicated rail freight services linking Apapa and Tin Can Island ports with the Inland Dry Ports in the north, a situation experts describe as a major setback to the Federal Government’s logistics strategy.
Maritime and logistics experts insist that no Inland Dry Port can succeed without efficient connectivity to the seaports.
In a chat with our correspondent, Managing Director of Multimix Academy, Dr. Obiora Madu, described the absence of critical logistics infrastructure as the single biggest obstacle confronting the Inland Dry Port programme.
“The best thing to look at is the absence of relevant logistics infrastructure,” he said.
“Connectivity to the hinterland is very critical. In fact, any port that doesn’t have good connectivity to the hinterland has a problem.”
According to him, Inland Dry Ports were established specifically to improve cargo movement between the seaports and inland commercial centres.
He explained that under an efficient logistics system, containers destined for facilities such as the Kaduna Inland Dry Port should move directly by rail after being sealed by the Nigeria Customs Service at the seaport.
“You cannot achieve success in isolation,” he said.
“Right now, containers still move by road. The security challenges are there and the roads themselves are not good.”
Madu noted that the increasing insecurity along major highways has further increased the cost of moving cargo inland, as transporters often incur additional expenses to safeguard their consignments.
He stressed that rail transportation remains the most efficient means of moving containerised cargo over long distances.
“Rail has the advantage of moving bulk cargo. One freight train can remove about a hundred trucks from the road. Apart from reducing pressure on the highways, it is also far cheaper to move goods by rail,” he explained.
He argue that the failure to fully integrate rail, road and port infrastructure has left Nigeria’s logistics system heavily dependent on trucks, resulting in chronic congestion around Lagos ports, higher transportation costs and longer cargo delivery times.
He added that importers who should ordinarily take delivery of their cargo from nearby Inland Dry Ports continue to travel to Lagos or pay huge sums to move containers by road over long distances.
The stakeholders also note that exporters from the northern and eastern parts of the country are disadvantaged because agricultural produce and manufactured goods must still be transported over deteriorating highways before reaching the seaports.
Beyond the financial implications, stakeholders warn that the underutilisation of Inland Dry Ports represents a significant economic loss.
The projects were expected to stimulate industrial growth, create thousands of jobs, encourage export expansion and attract investment to the hinterland. Instead, many of the facilities remain underutilised while pressure on Apapa and Tin Can Island ports persists.
Experts argue that unless government deliberately develops supporting infrastructure alongside port projects, the Inland Dry Port initiative may never achieve its intended purpose.
Madu believes infrastructure planning must be driven by the needs of trade rather than isolated government decisions.
“There has to be intentionality,” he said.
“You must ask stakeholders what the critical infrastructure challenges are. When government plans infrastructure without consulting those who use the system, you end up with projects that do not solve the real problem.”
