*From Uduma Kalu] | Aba, Abia State*
Nigeria's biggest importers have no port.
Traders from Anambra, Abia, Imo, Enugu, Ebonyi — owners of Onitsha Main Market (West Africa's biggest market by volume), Ariaria International Aba, Ladipo, Alaba International Lagos, Computer Village — account for over 60% of Nigeria's container imports by value, according to National Bureau of Statistics trade data and Bank of Industry MSME survey 2023.
Yet from Bonny to Calabar, there is no functional deep seaport serving them.
While in the last 3 days, two new ports worth over $8.5 billion were sealed for the South-West.
On September 24, 2026 in Paris, President Bola Tinubu witnessed the signing of the $7 billion Gateway Deep Sea Port in Ogun Waterside — 4km berth, 18-metre draft, integrated with a 10,000-hectare Blue Marine Special Economic Zone — between Ogun State and DP World MEA FZE. Federal Government promised road, rail and power linkage via the 28km Ogun section of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
It adds to Lekki Deep Seaport — $1.5 billion, 90 hectares, 16.5m draft, operational since 2023, now handling 40.6% of Nigeria's total cargo, Nigeria's first fully automated port.
Eastern ports: 1912 to 2026, zero deep seaport operational.
*COMPARISON: WEST vs EAST*
Port Location Cost Natural Depth Size Capacity Status
Lekki Deep Seaport Lagos $1.5bn 16.5m 90 hectares 1.2m TEU (2.5m max) Operational since 2023
Gateway Deep Sea Port Ogun Waterside $7bn+ | 18m | 10,000 ha SEZ | 50,000 jobs projected | MoU signed Sep 2026, Paris
Ibom Deep Seaport Akwa Ibom $4.2bn est 18.24m 565 hectares 5m TEU, 15 berths 11 years, FID Q4 2026, not built
Ose-Akwa Anambra - 22m - Deepwater Surveyed 1958, abandoned 1960
Onitsha River Port Anambra Built 2012 2.5m (needs dredging) River 30,000 TEU Concessioned 2023, no rail, idle
Azumini Abia - 3m river River Small barges No federal declaration
Winner on depth: Ibom (18.24m) vs Lekki (16.5m). Winner on size: Ibom (565ha vs 90ha). Winner on federal support: Lekki and Ogun.
*WHY IGBO IMPORTERS STILL USE LAGOS:*
NPA data 2024: Apapa + Tin Can handled 1,800 vessels; all Eastern ports combined 312.
A 40ft container from Shanghai to Lagos: $3,000 freight.
Trucking Lagos to Onitsha: ₦1.2m - ₦1.8m, 14 days, extortion at 40 checkpoints.
Freight to Calabar if possible: $3,200 (only $200 more).
Trucking Calabar to Onitsha: ₦300k, 4 hours.
But importer cannot choose Calabar — no mother vessel calls there because channel is 7.2m deep vs 16.5m in Lekki, no scanner, War Risk insurance $2,500 per vessel for Eastern waters.
So Igbo importer pays Lagos clearing agent from ANLCA/NAGAFF, rents warehouse in Ladipo, pays NARTO/AMATO trucker — all Lagos-based associations listed by NPA as stakeholders.
*FACTORS KILLING STATE-BUILT EASTERN PORTS:*
*1. Exclusive List Trap*
Section 36, Second Schedule, 1999 Constitution: ports are federal only. Governor can build jetty, but without Presidential declaration, Customs cannot post.
*2. No Shipping Line Equity*
Lekki succeeded because CMA CGM is investor. Ogun succeeded because DP World is operator from day one. Eastern governors seek money alone.
*3. Divided East vs United West*
South-West presents Lekki + Badagry + Olokola as one "Lagos corridor decongestion" plan. East presents 6 competing projects. FG tells them "agree on one port first".
*4. Revenue Centralisation*
Customs collected ₦6.1 trillion in 2024 — ₦4 trillion from Lagos. That goes to Federation Account. If cargo moves East, Apapa Command revenue falls. 2025 budget: ₦150bn Lagos rehab vs ₦20bn for all Eastern ports.
The highest importers in Nigeria — Igbo traders who control spare parts, electronics, fabrics, building materials — fund Lagos State IGR through warehouse rent and trucking levies, fund federal revenue through Apapa Customs, but cannot land goods in their backyard.
As one Onitsha importer told this reporter: "We are not asking FG to build port for us. We built Ladipo, we built Alaba, we can build Azumini. Just give us same gazette you gave Lekki and Ogun."
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*SOURCES BOX*
*1. Ogun $7bn Port:* MoU signing Paris, Sept 24, 2026 — Witnessed by President Bola Tinubu, Minister Adegboyega Oyetola, NPA MD Abubakar Dantsoho, Gov Dapo Abiodun, DP World MEA FZE. Specs: 4km berth, 18m draft, 10,000ha Blue Marine SEZ, 28km Ogun section Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. Initial investment "more than $7bn", "over 50,000 direct jobs" — Ogun State press statement by Kayode Akinmade, Sep 2026.
*2. Lekki Deep Seaport:* $1.5bn-$1.6bn (CHEC, Tolaram, NPA), operational 2023, Lagos Free Zone, Ibeju-Lekki, 16.5m depth, 90 hectares, 3 berths, 1.2m TEU (2.5m max), 40.6% national cargo throughput by 2025 — NPA Operational Performance Report 2025. Investors: CMA CGM operator, AfDB, EIB, Standard Chartered.
*3. Eastern Ports:* Calabar 7.2m, Warri 7.5m — NPA channel survey 2024. Rivers Port Complex built 1912, last rehab 1960, declared unfit 2021. War Risk insurance Eastern Gulf $2,500 — NIMASA/Lloyd's 2024. Vessels 2024: Lagos 1,800, Eastern combined 312 — NPA Annual Report.
*4. Ibom vs Lekki:* Ibom 18.24m depth, 565 hectares, 15 berths, 5m TEU — Akwa Ibom State / Federal Ministry Marine & Blue Economy. Cost $4.2bn est, Bollore/PowerChina, FID Q4 2026.
*5. Historical:* 1958 Hansard — Eastern Region motion Ose-Akwa/Osemoto deep seaport, 22m depth, 18 nautical miles to Atlantic. 1960 Hansard budget debate — funds diverted to Kainji Dam. 1975 NPA Decree No.38 — centralised ports under FG.
*6. Constitutional:* 1999 Constitution Second Schedule Part I Item 36 — ports Exclusive List. 1963 Constitution — ports Concurrent List.
*7. Budget:* 2025 Federal Budget Ministry Marine & Blue Economy — ₦150bn Lagos port rehab vs ₦20bn Eastern ports combined — Budget Office.
*8. Customs Revenue:* NCS 2024 ₦6.1trn total, over ₦4trn from Apapa + Tin Can — CG Bashir Adewale Adeniyi briefing Jan 2025.
*9. Igbo Importer Dominance:* Onitsha Main Market 100,000+ traders — Anambra Market Survey. Alaba, Ladipo, Trade Fair, Computer Village — NBS MSME Survey 2023, BoI MSME Report 2023 (South-East 60%+ import trade). Ariaria International Aba 37,000 shoemakers.
*10. Stakeholders List:* NPA Licensed Operators Register, Nigerian Shippers Council — ANLCA, NAGAFF, AFPPON, NCMDLCA, AREFFN, CRFFN, MWUN, NARTO, AMATO, COMTUA, BOAN, STOAN.
From Uduma Kalu
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