Ogun State has taken a major step towards strengthening Nigeria’s maritime and industrial economy after the state government and global ports and logistics giant DP World signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) for the development of a deep seaport and a special economic zone. The agreements, signed in Paris on Thursday, September 24, are expected to attract an initial investment of more than $7 billion into the Nigerian economy, according to President Bola Tinubu.

The proposed Gateway Deep Seaport at Ogun Waterside is designed with a four-kilometre berth and an 18-metre draft, allowing it to accommodate larger vessels used in international trade. The project is expected to ease pressure on Lagos’ Apapa and Tin Can Island ports, while reducing some of the delays and logistics costs faced by importers, exporters and consumers.

Alongside the port, the Ogun Blue Marine Special Economic Zone is planned across about 10,000 hectares and is expected to support manufacturing, processing and export activities. The Federal Government said the integrated development could create more than 50,000 direct jobs when fully developed, with additional indirect employment opportunities and increased non-oil export earnings across the value chain.

The investment also forms part of a wider transport and industrial corridor that will depend on improved road and other infrastructure connections. Tinubu said the 28-kilometre Ogun section of the 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, which the government expects to complete before the end of 2026, would provide an important link between the proposed port, the economic zone, Lagos and the Nigerian hinterland.

For Nigeria’s business community, the proposed development places greater attention on the country’s maritime infrastructure, logistics capacity and ability to attract export-oriented investment. The Federal Government said it would provide regulatory and institutional support, including road, rail and power connectivity, as the projects move from agreements to implementation. If delivered as planned, the port and economic zone would form an integrated trade and industrial hub serving Nigerian and wider African markets.

source: The cable