Inland waterways can ease pressure on Nigerian roads, says Moghalu

EWLY appointed Managing Director of the Nigeria Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and National Auditor of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief George Moghalu, has said that when fully developed, the nation’s waterways has the capacity to ease the pressure on Nigeria roads.

Moghalu said waterways also have the capacity to generate millions of jobs and open up communities along the waterways across the country.

He expressed concern that majority of Nigerians are unaware of the potentials of the agency, attributing it to lack of adequate publicity for its activities.

Speaking in an interview in Abuja at the weekend, Moghalu said his plan for the agency was to engage critical stakeholders and brainstorm on how to make good use of the waterways and develop the water transport sector as a way of taking pressure away from the roads.

He said the cases, like the Apapa gridlock, can be addressed easily if the waterways are developed and opened up, and goods arriving the ports transported to various parts of the country.

He expressed appreciation to the President for the confidence, saying “with a firm commitment, I assure the President that I will not let him down and I will not let Nigerians down. I am determined to leave a mark by the time I would have finished my term in NIWA.”

Chief Moghalu said “NIWA is more of a regulatory agency in charge of the water ways in the country. I believe that if we explore the waterways of Nigeria, it has great potentials in the area of water transport.

“The simplest I can say now is that it will reduce the burden on Nigerian roads. If our water ways are opened, the channels are free and secured, you can open the scope of passenger traffic. It is economical and it goes round the country.

“A good percentage of the goods that arrive the port in Lagos goes to the Southeast and are transported by road. It puts great pressure on the road. But if we have a clear waterway transport system, all these goods can be received in Lagos and moved to the inland ports.

“We have a completed River port today in Onitsha and a jetty being built in Oguta. We also have a completed port in Baro and some of the goods going to the north can be moved by the water ways to Baro and to other areas where we have functional jetties and ports.