One year after, NIWA yet to move 1000 containers by barges

One year after the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) announced plans to decongest the Lagos ports by moving 1000 containers from Lagos to Onitsha, the initiative which at some point had some companies licensed by the agency and the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) to carry out the operation, remain unfulfilled, investigations have revealed.

Recall that NIWA in March 2021 had engaged ACTL to move cargoes from Lagos ports to Onitsha via barges due to the lingering congestion issues experienced at the ports in Lagos. The agency had explained that the idea of hauling containers via Burutu Ports to Onitsha River port was to deliberately avoid the two small bridges of Gbarekolo and Bumandi.

This is because the two bridges are too tiny and shallow for sea moving badges and vessels to ply through, a NIWA statement had read.

However, one year after that lofty plan by the Managing Director of NIWA, Dr George Moghalu, barge operations from Lagos to Onitsha is still not a reality as every cargo is still being moved out of the port via the roads while barge operations has being restricted to within Lagos only since its introduction in mid 2019.

Speaking on the failed effort by NIWA to move 1000 containers by barges, a barge operator who wouldn’t want his name in print explained that the issue of insecurity played a major role in aborting any plan to move containers by barges from Lagos to Onitsha.

“Yes, the Managing Director of NIWA really wanted to make a statement shortly after his appointment. He wanted to do something that seems out of this world. The arrangement was there, but nobody was willing to allow his cargo to be used for the trial operation.

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“Everything was alright until when arrangement got to the commencement of the trial period. Cargoes were needed to commence the trial period, but no importer was willing to allow his cargo to be used. I really cannot blame the importers because we are talking of a volatile route on the waterways.

“There was no insurance arrangement to convince the cargo owners to allow their cargoes to be used for the trial operation. What if anything happens to the cargoes mid way through the journey? Who will bear the loss?

“Answers to such questions have not been answered up till today and that’s why the plan to move 1000 containers from Lagos via Burutu to Onitsha port has remained unfulfilled as of today,” the barge operator told the Nigerian Tribune exclusively.