The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has assured that the Ibadan dry port will commence operations before the end of the 2nd quarter of the year.
Acting Executive Secretary of the council, Mr.Hassan Bello made this known yesterday when the Oyo state Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Cooperatives paid him a courtesy visit in Lagos.
Bello said that the visit will spur the maritime agency to make appropriate pronouncement in ensuring the realisation of the dry port in Oyo State.
The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has assured that the Ibadan dry port will commence operations before the end of the 2nd quarter of the year.
Acting Executive Secretary of the council, Mr.Hassan Bello made this known yesterday when the Oyo state Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Cooperatives paid him a courtesy visit in Lagos.
Bello said that the visit will spur the maritime agency to make appropriate pronouncement in ensuring the realisation of the dry port in Oyo State.
The executive secretary said that the council does not believe in abandoned projects, even as he stressed that the dry ports initiative were conceived by the Nigerian Shippers council about 10 years ago.
According to him, the dry ports will ease congestion at the seaports and create employment for Nigerians adding that they will facilitate fast delivery of cargoes to the door steps of the importers.
He said that NSC perceived the dry port as centres for export, pointing out that the country needs to diversify its economy from import dependence to export oriented economy.
Bello added that the agency has seen the potentials of the dry ports, which he said can also operate as a seaport.
He told the commissioner that the ICD project were one of the few projects that were subjected to the Public and Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement
He added that concessionaires are on site for them to commence building operations at the site.
"We cannot have general application in all the ICDs, but what we hope is that before the second quarter of the year, we believe that with the development of the ICDs and Ibadan particularly is of great significant, we are conscious of it and we have made effort to see to the operation of this ICD and we work tirelessly together with concessionaires to see that these things materialize".
Earlier in his remarks, Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Cooperatives Adebayo Olagbenro said that the visit was because the present administration of the state is eager about the completion of the project during its tenure.
He said that the meeting with the NSC was a success even as he added that a delegate from Oyo state will meet with the Minister of Trade and Investment; Dr Olusegun Aganga on the project and also cahrt the way forward.
"We are anxious to have the project executed and just yesterday I received a letter from the host community and they are getting worried that for over 10 years, they have been on the project and nothing has been done about it", he told the Shippers’ Council boss.
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