FG to concession waterways to drive revenue growth

The minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola has directed the Nigerian Inland Waterways (NIWA) to commercialise and concession some major waterways to boost revenue generation in the marine and blue economy sector.

He gave the charge on Monday during NIWA’s Anti-corruption training on strengthening integrity and revenue systems for board members, managers and area managers in Abuja.

Oyetola said, “NIWA must therefore fundamentally rethink how it views revenue. Revenue is not an afterthought; it is a core operational responsibility. The Authority must move beyond traditional approaches and begin to think boldly and creatively. Our waterways are economic corridors.

“They should be monetised responsibly through a mix of user charges, concessions, partnerships and value-added services. Operational river ports should not sit idle; they must become hubs of commercial activity, logistics and industrial clustering. Safety enforcement should not be seen as a burden but as a value proposition that encourages operators to use inland waterways with confidence,” he said.

The Minister who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Hajiya Fatima Sugra Tabi’a Mahmood, added that “there will be no room for excuses as the Federal Government alone does not have the fiscal space to fund all dredging projects, port infrastructure, safety equipment and enforcement needs.”

“That reality is not unique to Nigeria, and it will not change in the near term. NIWA’s Board and Management must therefore rise to the challenge of significantly increasing internally generated revenue to fulfil the Authority’s mandate. This is not optional; it is imperative.”

Also speaking, the acting MD of NIWA, Alhaji Umar Yusuf Girei stated that “There are some proposals from some private companies for concession and NIWA is currently reviewing those proposals. Once it is concluded, areas that need to be concessioned, will be concessioned, all we need to is add value to whatever we do,”

He also stated that Coast guards have extended that time limit at the boarding points as part of efforts to monitor and curb the incidents of boat mishaps.

On revenue generation, he said the Authority is making efforts to digitalise all its activities to capture all the revenues coming into the agency

Also speaking, the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, said ICPC is willing and ready to work within the confines of its enabling law to help agencies such as NIWA, to prevent corruption through various prevention tools including corruption risk assessment and capacity building.

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