NIGERIA AND CHINA DEEPEN CO-OPERATION IN MARINE SECTOR FOR ACCELERATED DEVELOPMENT ON MOST NIGERIAN SEA PORTS.
Nigeria and China have pledged to deepen cooperation in the marine and blue economy sector, focusing on boosting port development and opening new markets for Nigerian aquaculture exports.
Nigeria, China commitment was made during a meeting between the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, and the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Yu Dunhai, at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory on Thursday.
The Hon. Minister Oyetola highlighted Nigeria’s vast maritime endowments, including its 853 kilometers of coastline along the Atlantic Ocean and over 10,000 kilometers of inland waterways.
He emphasised that Nigeria’s maritime domain holds immense potential for shipping, port operations, fisheries, renewable ocean energy, marine tourism, and coastal infrastructure development. According to the Hon. Minister, “Our ministry is determined to create the right framework for investment and partnership, and we believe that Nigeria has a lot to learn from China’s marine and blue economy development model,”
The port is capable of handling ultra-large container vessels and significantly boosting Nigeria’s trade volume. According to Ambassador Yu, the project has created thousands of direct and indirect jobs, eased congestion at Lagos ports, and positioned Nigeria as a key maritime hub in Africa.
Ambassador Yu also revealed that an agreement is in the works for the export of Nigerian aquacultural products to China, which will open new markets for local producers and strengthen food trade ties between the two nations. China has already approved zero tariffs on Nigeria’s aquaculture exports to the Chinese market, demonstrating China’s commitment to deepening economic cooperation.
Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to building on the solid foundation of China-Nigeria relations. The honorable minister expressed optimism that new avenues of collaboration would emerge from the engagement, saying, “Nigeria’s marine and blue economy holds tremendous opportunities for investors, and with China’s cooperation, we are confident of unlocking this potential for the benefit of our people.”
The Seaports listed for Accelerated Development on the National frame work include Bakassi. Deep Seaport, Akwa Ibom, Badagry, Olokola, Ondo, Bonny, Burutu, Benin, Ibom and Age in Lagos, Rivers, Ondo, Edo , cross River State.⛴️🚢🛫🛥️
In a separate development, Nigeria and China have also inked a $2bn maritime investment deal aimed at accelerating indigenous vessel ownership and positioning Nigeria as a regional maritime hub.
The initiative is expected to deliver $2bn in vessel investments, $20bn in freight contracts for Nigerian operators, $200m for maritime training, and $50m for training vessels. This programme is anticipated to create over 2,000 new maritime jobs annually🤔, train 25,000 globally certified Nigerian seafarers, and build a robust local shipping ecosystem.
Nigerians are happy and have expressed their consin on the ties attached to this agreements, they went further to advice the federal government, the Honorable minister to make sure they understood the terms of this co-operation words by words to avoid inslaving the entire citizens of Nigeria to Chinese government.
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