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The Federal Government has been called upon to dredge the Lower River Niger from the confluence of the Rivers Niger and Benue and make it navigable all year round so that ocean-going ships can sail inland to the confluence from overseas to boost Nigeria’s economy.
The call was made yesterday by Professor Anthony Danladi Ali of the Department of History and International Studies while delivering the 44th inaugural lecture in the Federal University, Lokoja’s inaugural lecture series.
The theme of the lecture was, “Politics of transportation, dredging and navigability on the Lower River Niger, 1901–2023.”
Prof. Ali, who noted that poor politics has ruined the transportation system in Nigeria, said billions of naira are budgeted annually for the transport sector, yet there is little to show for it as the masses continue to suffer.
He stressed that it was unfortunate that since Nigeria attained independence in 1960, transportation policies and laws had been tailored to favour certain areas represented by people in government without considering the overall benefits of such laws and policies for the generality of the people.
For example, the don noted that the billions of naira invested annually in Baro Port in Niger State could have been channelled into other productive ventures, as the port is currently not operational and has no economic relevance to the people.
He stressed that if the Lower River Niger was thoroughly dredged for navigation, it could serve as an alternative mode of transportation to the road and railway systems, adding that the River Niger is currently being underutilised.
“Federal Government of Nigeria has failed to pay adequate attention to develop inland water transportation on the Lower Niger River because political considerations overrides economic decisions in Nigeria since the country gained political independence in 1960.
“We must realize that an efficient transportation system is vital to the growth of Nigeria’s economy. Government must therefore intervene to resolve the conflict in the transportation sector.”
While giving his recommendations on how the country can generate more income through the waterway, he said the Federal Government should improve the transportation capacity of the Lower River Niger through annual dredging.
He also said the Federal Government requires greater commitment and sustained investment in the Lower River Niger to bring it up to the standard of the Mississippi River.
Prof. Ali also called on the Federal Government to create intermodal transport linkages connecting major river ports on the Lower River Niger and ensure that canals are constructed as arteries of trade.
Earlier, in his welcome address, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Solomon Gbenga Ibileye, said inaugural lectures are a normal academic exercise aimed at cross-fertilising intellectual ideas and commended Prof. Ali for choosing a topic he described as timely.
