Dantsoho: NPA Operations Now 90% Automated, Says Agency To Tour All Inland Dry Ports

By Stella Okocha

The Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, says the Authority will embark on nationwide tour of all inland dry ports to assess their readiness and capacity.

Dantsoho disclosed this when he received delegation of Inland Containers Nigeria Limited, ICNL, led by Mnaging Director/CEO, Mr. Omotayo Dada, at NPA Headquarters in Lagos.

He said NPA operations are now nearly 90 per cent automated and urged ICNL to plug into Eto electronic call-up system, Port Community System and National Single Window for real-time cargo tracking, reduced bottlenecks and improved transparency.

According to him, inland dry port infrastructure must be upgraded to handle increased cargo volume expected from ongoing seaport modernisation, calling for public-private partnerships to improve facilities, streamline logistics and ease cost of doing business.

The meeting, which focused on deepening operational synergy and addressing hurdles in hinterland trade connectivity, also aligned with national trade facilitation goals and improving cargo evacuation from seaports to inland dry ports.

Dada reaffirmed partnership as backbone of Nigeria’s multimodal transport chain linking coastal ports to northern hubs, highlighting role of Kaduna Inland Dry Port in serving northern shippers and landlocked countries such as Niger and Chad.

Both parties committed to adoption of technology, intermodal rail evacuation and stronger dry port facilities in line with goals of Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy to boost port efficiency, reduce congestion and drive economic growth.