Rather unexpectedly, President Bola Tinubu recently removed Mohammed Bello Koko as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). The removal was unexpected because, the Nigerian maritime industry and port stakeholders in particular were probably already getting used to Koko’s style of administration.
It was probably also unexpected because Koko was already getting used to working with the present regime of President Tinubu. We heard that he had been assured of job security.
We recall that he assumed the position of the Chief Executive of the Grade ‘A’ parastatal in May 6, 2021, when he was made the acting managing director. And by February 22, 2022, he was confirmed as the substantive managing director. Prior to these appointments, Bello-Koko was the executive director, Finance & Administration of the agency.
Apparently, his sterling performance as acting Managing Director evidenced by plugging of income leakages, unprecedented growth in revenue and improved operational efficiencies led to significant increase in container traffic to Onne Port and the demonstrated resolve to open up the Eastern Ports of Warri, Calabar and Rivers. This probably convinced then-President Muhammadu Buhari to confirm Koko as Managing Director of the NPA in 2022.
However, the impactful tenure ended on July 12, 2024 when the president appointed Abubakar Dantsoho as the new NPA Managing Director.
Arguably, Bello Koko impacted hugely on the NPA and indeed the nation’s maritime industry, while he held sway as the CEO.
Without running his successors down, the ports were not in the best of shape, prior to his appointment. The state of the access roads to these ports (especially those in Lagos) made them almost a no-go-area for shippers.
The state of these roads made ports of neighbouring countries more attractive. Importers dropped their cargoes in Cotonou port, Benin Republic.
Apart from the state of the roads leading into the ports, other reasons were due to issues with dilapidated port infrastructure, long cargo dwell time, poor vessel turnaround time, a long clearing process, and port congestion resulting from traffic gridlock within the port corridor. These affected revenues revenue generation and cargo throughput.
Perhaps, one of the major landmark achievements under the watch of Bello Koko is the completion of Lekki deep seaport. Even though the port did not start during his tenure, he successfully navigated the delicate tedious process which led to the commissioning and commencement of commercial operations at the port. Lekki port has become a masterpiece and reference point in port operations, not only in Nigeria and indeed Africa.
Arguably, no NPA Chief Executive has equipped the pilotage districts like the management of the immediate past Managing Director; Koko. Apart from Lagos, which never lacked navigational aids, the NPA under Koko provided and installed about 90 fairway buoys at Warri and Calabar Pilotage Districts alone to enable proper channel marking and route mapping.
It also acquired harbour crafts, including tugboats, pilot cutters, and patrol boats, to eliminate delays associated with the berthing and sailing of vessels as well as improve efficiency. It also procured and deployed security patrol boats to all pilotage districts to address the incessant attacks by vessels along the channels and at ports’ waterfronts.
Bello-Koko also completely rehabilitated the control towers at Lagos and Tin-Can Island Ports and the supply and installation of almost 200 marine fenders to boost the integrity of the quay walls and serve as a precautionary measure to prevent any form of accident arising from direct vessel impact on the quay wall.
In the area of productivity and staff development, a sterling testimony to this, is the renovation and subsequent commissioning of the agency’s dockyard training school in Apapa, Lagos. The edifice ha since become a resource centre for in-house training. This effort continues to save the agency huge resources that would have been expended on trainings if rented facilities are used.
No doubt, there has been a revolution in the area of export in the economy of Nigeria, and the NPA took the lead under Bello Koko. It is on record that NPA under Koko licensed Export Processing Terminals to facilitate exports at Nigerian sea ports.
In the area of remittances into the account of the Federal Government, the NPA under Bello Koko did not fair badly at all.
The authority’s revenue grew exponentially and remittances also surged. Remittances have progressed from N91 billion in 2022. And by 2023, the NPA remitted an unprecedented sum of N131.2bn to the federation account. Report also showed that taxes paid to the government which grew at different times include USD$77.7m and N17.6 billion respectively.
Before Koko left office penultimate week, he had successfully secured a $700 million facility agreement Citibank Nigeria for the rehabilitation of the Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports in Lagos. The loan is to be funded by the UK Export Finance (UKEF), an export credit agency.
In addition, the NPA under Bello-Koko has also seeking financing for upgrading of the eastern ports including Calabar, Warri, Onne and Rivers Ports as well as the reconstruction of Escravos breakwater.
There is no overemphasizing the fact that he did well while at the helms of affairs. To the extent that there is a remarkable improvement in the revenue profile of the agency, to the extent that the ports are now agents of renewed export drive and revenue earnings therefrom, to the extent that the approaches to the ports are now much better than they were when he was appointed, and to the extent that turn around time has improved tremendously, oner can safely say that Bello Koko did well.
It is our expectation that these achievements will spur his successor; Dr Abubakar Dantsoho to also strive for excellence.
