The Lagos State Government has assured investors in the waterway transport system of many benefits, saying there are vast potentials on the waterways available for any potential investor.
While speaking on Wednesday at an event organised by the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) in collaboration with Future Cities Nigeria (FCN), the state governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Public-Private Partnership, Ope George, said the state government has put in place several infrastructures on the waterways that would ease investors’ operations across the state.
The event which is the first waterways investment summit with the theme “Lagos water transportation -Transformation and investment opportunities’, was held in the Ikoyi. The governor at the event averred that the State Government would continue to invest towards ensuring an enabling environment required for the private sector to thrive, adding that the interventions will further boost the enabling environment for investments by the private sector.
The intervention by the state government, according to the governor, has further revealed the great potential available for private sector investment on Lagos waterways. He disclosed the benefits awaiting investors on
The event was attended by captains of the industry, representatives of the British Government, Local and international business leaders, top government functionaries, investors, and senior stakeholders in the maritime sector and others.
The governor said “The Waterways, our focus at this Summit, has witnessed major infrastructural upgrades and the establishment of several safety systems. In terms of Infrastructural Upgrades, 16 Jetties and Terminals have been upgraded/constructed, there are 21 ferries operating on the waterways and several priority Waterways Routes have been channelized.
“Regarding Safety Systems, we have expanded the Water Guard Corps to adequately monitor the Jetties/Terminals, and an Inland Waterways Control Room has been set up to monitor waterways activities and gather data. This Control room will be the first of its kind in West Africa. There is also the Upgrade of the Search and Rescue Units to respond to emergencies and accidents, just to mention a few of what we have been doing in this sector.
“I am very sure that at the end of it all, you will be well informed and ready to exploit the various waterways opportunities available for investment”, the governor added.
Sanwo-Olu hinted that the many millions of Lagosians have started embracing waterways as their preferred mode of transportation as it remains one of the fastest modes of transportation within the state.
“With a population of over 22m and most of this commuting by road every day, there is so much pressure on our roads. There are over five million cars and 200,000 commercial vehicles on the road every day. The national average is 11 vehicles per kilometre. Lagos crashes the scale at 227 vehicles per kilometer daily”.
