Tobi Soniyi in Abuja
The Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, has disclosed that the deep s eaport to be constructed in his state will create 30,000 jobs.
The port, located around Bakassi waterways and the Atlantic Ocean, is part of Ayade’s signature projects which include the 260 kilometre super highway which will link Calabar Metropolis to Katsina-Ala in Benue State.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on October 20, 2015 performed the ground- breaking ceremony in Obung village of Akamkpa local government area of the state.
Ayade spoke with journalists after he met with the president at the State House on Thursday.
He said, “It is going to be a place where all modern vessels will pass and it will create at least 30,000 jobs and because Cross River has 20,000 square kilometers of landmass, it would cause an expansion of Cross River State and that will change the complete economics and business activities of Cross River State.
“In basic clear terms, that highway and the deep seaport will benefit the states of Kogi, Nasarawa, because without a deep seaport, it will be almost impossible to exploit the iron ore export in those states. That is why those who understand what a federal structure looks like would have a coastline in the north and south regions of Nigeria. Having one major port in Lagos and another in Calabar will feed the north east and north central from Calabar and northwest and middle belt from Lagos State.
“This is how they originally designed this country to be. A situation where we have only one gateway into the country, every port is Lagos, it is just strategically wise to have an alternative and that alternative port coming bigger and better would cut the cost of shipment coming from Senegal and Lome to Nigeria.”
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