Why Kaduna Inland Dry Port Not Performing Optimally….Shippers’ Council Boss

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council has lamented that lack of railway connectivity to Kaduna Inland Dry Port (KIDP) still militating against the capacity growth of cargo movement.

This is coming barely two years when the facility was commissioned to boost import and export trade.

President Muhammadu Buhari on the 4th of January 2018 , commissioned the dry port operated by the Inland Container Nigeria Limited (ICNL).

Bello who disclosed this during a presentation of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to journalists in Lagos, assured stakeholders in the industry of the council’s collaboration with the Nigerian Railways Corporation (NRC) to effect smooth movement of consignments from the seaports to the northern ICD through rail lines.

According to him, the rail capacity is the major hindrance to the smooth movement of consignments capacity adding that once the rail tracks are completed , some would be dedicated to the Kaduna freight station.

The executive secretary further urged private investors to indicate interest in boosting railway services by provide locomotives and wagons as a way to support the optimal utilisation of the facility.

“Rail capacity is the reason why we don’t have much cargo movement. Though there are steady increase from Kaduna in terms of import and export but the rail capacity should have the frequency ,the rail should be connected to the seaport.

“Though there are massive rehabilitation towards rail network to Kaduna but COVID19 halted all the process and we are looking at how to revamp the railway sector.”

While harping on the COVID19 lockdown as it affects port operations,Bello quipped that ignorance of the nature of shipping business would make people deny cargoes cleared from the port from getting to the destination.

He therefore counselled that interstate lockdown should not prevent movement of cargoes cleared from the port.

“Shippers’ Council has interfaced with the Presidential Task Force to open state borders because some states are not bothered about internationality of shipping.

“Once the government says the port should open, cargo must find its ways to its destination. You cannot say because you closed your borders cargoes should not move,” he said.