Port Financing Deal:  IYC, Onuesoke Canvass Inclusion of Niger Delta Ports in National Maritime Devt Agenda

• Onueseko: UK has about 120 commercial seaports with 69m population

•Nigeria with over 200m people shouldn’t favour only Lagos ports

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa and Sylvester Idowu in Warri

Few days after Nigeria and the United Kingdom inked agreement to transform the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has called for the strategic inclusion of Niger Delta ports in the national maritime development agenda.

The umbrella body of Ijaw youths worldwide, while commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s efforts in modernizing Nigeria’s port infrastructure stressed the importance of fairness, equity, and adherence to federal character principles in the distribution of national assets.

In another related development, notable businessman and CEO of DAS Energy Limited, Chief Sunny Onuesoke, also faulted the federal government’s decision to exclude ports located in other parts of Nigeria in the £746m agreement signed with the United Kingdom aimed at modernising Apapa and Tin Can Island ports in Lagos.

President Tinubu had witnessed the signing of a £746 million financing agreement in London between Nigeria’s Ministry of Finance, led by Wale Edun, and Citi Bank.

The agreement signed in the United Kingdom on Thursday is aimed at modernising Apapa and Tin Can Island ports in Lagos.

In a statement signed by Binebai Princewill, the IYC called for the development, rehabilitation, and operationalization of key ports in the Niger Delta region, including Burutu, Warri, Onne, Sapele, Bonny, Koko, Brass, Agge Deep Seaport, and Gelegele Seaport.

It said these ports are historically significant and possess strategic advantages for trade, logistics, and industrial expansion.

The IYC highlighted the need for balanced development across all geopolitical zones to decongest Lagos ports, stimulate economic growth, create job opportunities, enhance national security, and promote regional industrialization.

The council urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ensure that port development projects reflect national balance and called on relevant agencies to initiate feasibility assessments and partnership frameworks for reviving these maritime assets.

The statement read: “The Ijaw nation, which has contributed immensely to Nigeria’s economic survival—particularly through oil and gas resources—deserves equitable access to infrastructure that will further unlock its economic potential.

“We therefore urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to demonstrate statesmanship by ensuring that ongoing and future port development projects reflect true national balance. The principle of federal character must not be theoretical; it must be visible in tangible projects that impact the lives of all Nigerians.

“It is our considered position that Nigeria’s maritime development must not be disproportionately concentrated in Lagos State alone.

“The continued centralisation of port infrastructure in Lagos not only places undue pressure on existing facilities but also sidelines historically significant and economically viable ports across the Niger Delta and Ijaw territories.

“The current concentration of port development in Lagos—reportedly involving investments valued at over N1.3 trillion—raises serious concerns about regional imbalance and economic exclusion. Nigeria is a federation, and its development must reflect inclusivity across all geopolitical zones.

“The IYC Worldwide wishes to clearly state that the continued refusal or failure of the Federal Government to address such critical and genuine demands for inclusivity remains one of the major drivers of rising ethnic agitations across the country.

“Nigeria, as a multi-ethnic nation, must be governed with fairness, justice, and balance, where every ethnic group feels a sense of belonging and equitable treatment. Anything short of this, risks deepening divisions and undermining national unity.”

Meanwhile, reacting to the agreement in a statement issued in Warri yesterday, Onuesuoke demanded the money voted for the modernisation of Lagos ports should be spread in the development of Warri port, Onne port and Calabar port among others.

He stated that the development of the South-South ports will bring even economic development to the country.                                   

Onuesoke lamented that the government allocated such a huge amount to Apapa Wharf and Tin-Island Ports in Lagos alone, when Warri port, Onne Port, Koko Port and Calabar port among others which are of more commercial importance were abandoned.

“Why did you decide to secure finance for upgrading or over hauling Tin-Can Island and Apapa Wharf? Why do you deliberately sideline other commercial ports? Is Lagos more industrial or economically viable than Port Harcourt and Warri in strength of the oil in Nigeria that feeds the nation?

“What is wrong in developing the Onne Port that is especially for oil facilitates that feed the nation? What is wrong with developing the Warri Port? What is wrong with rehabilitating the Calabar port or even Koko port? Why are we sticking to only Tin-Island and Apapa Wharf?

“Must every ship come to Lagos? How would you tell someone who wants to import a material in the oil industry? Do you want them to ship the material to Lagos ports and spend huge amounts to transport them to their location in the Niger Delta region which is the hub of oil production?” Onuesoke queried.

The former Delta State gubernatorial aspirant said it was funny that United Kingdom which Nigeria signed the agreement with has approximately 120 commercial seaports, ranging from major container hubs to smaller specialized facilities which handle about 95% of the country’s international trade, including top ports like Felixstowe (largest container port), Immingham (largest by tonnage), and Dover (busiest ferry port).

“The British, who are about 69m people, have 120 ports. Is it not funny that Nigeria with over 200 million people, they are giving us just one port in Lagos. Why will the government defend an economic policy that favour only Lagos at the expense of other regions? There is no economic benefit to Nigeria in the visit Mr. President went to in the United Kingdom.

“Whose employment will it create? It is either you created it for the key companies in the UK that have not been faring well for some time in terms of trade or you created jobs for the British. There is no economic benefit to that,” he stated.