Economy
Lekki Deep Seaport Reaches Half Operational Capacity
Lekki Deep Seaport reaches nearly 50% operational capacity, with month-on-month growth in container throughput and improved connectivity driving efficiency
The Lekki Deep Seaport has reached almost half of its designed operational capacity, with steady month-on-month growth in container throughput since September, the port announced.
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Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Lekki Port LFTZ Enterprise Limited, Mr Wang Qiang, disclosed this during an end-of-year media parley on Tuesday, attributing the development to growing confidence from shipping lines and cargo owners.
“We already reached almost 50 per cent of our port capacity now,” Wang said, noting consistent improvements in the number of twenty-foot equivalent units handled monthly.
He emphasised the importance of efficient multimodal connectivity to sustain and accelerate growth, highlighting barge operations as a critical evacuation channel.
Wang also pointed to the ongoing Lagos–Calabar Coastal Road project, which he said would ease congestion and improve access to the port.
“Rail connectivity is essential, particularly given the scale of industrial activities emerging within the Lekki corridor,” he added.
While stressing that Lekki Port is fully automated, Wang acknowledged that delays may persist until government agencies and other stakeholders align with end-to-end digital processes.
He cited customs procedures, particularly physical cargo examinations, as areas requiring full digitalisation to reduce cargo dwell time.
“Integration between the customs system, the terminal operating system, and customers is already part of an agreed implementation schedule. For automation to work efficiently, all players must be ready—customers, government, and every stakeholder,” Wang explained.
He also noted that improved connectivity and performance optimisation could effectively double the port’s capacity without expanding its physical footprint.
The Lekki Deep Seaport, Nigeria’s first deep-sea port, is one of West Africa’s largest maritime infrastructure projects, located at Ibeju-Lekki in Lagos State within the Lagos Free Zone.
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During the media tour, journalists visited the customs examination area, scanners, and shipside operations within the terminal.
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Economy
Governor Dauda Lawal Join VP Shettima’s Delegation to Benin Republic, Seeks Industrial Model to Boost Zamfara’s Agric Zones
Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has described the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone (GDIZ) as a practical blueprint for transforming Zamfara state’s agricultural sector, as he joined Vice President of Nigeria, Senator Kashim Shettima and five other governors on a working visit to the Benin Republic industrial hub on Friday.
The delegation toured the 1,640-hectare public-private industrial platform, inspecting integrated textile and agro-processing facilities where locally produced cotton is converted into yarn, fabric and finished garments while cashew and soybean are processed for domestic and export markets. GDIZ, developed by the Beninese government and ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms, has created more than 25,000 jobs since production began in 2021.
For Governor Lawal, who presides over an agrarian state with vast arable land and a strong comparative advantage in crop production, the visit presented an opportunity to draw direct lessons for Zamfara’s agricultural transformation agenda.
“Zamfara holds a strong comparative advantage in agriculture. We grow all crops in the state, we are not limited to soybeans. We have the land and it is fertile,” Governor Lawal had told global investors at the Africa Investment Forum in Morocco last November, where he signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) to drive large-scale agricultural transformation under the INTEGRANIUM Initiative.
The GDIZ visit is aimed at strengthening the implementation of Nigeria’s Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones Programme, drawing practical lessons from Benin’s approach to agricultural value addition, industrial infrastructure, investment mobilisation and export-oriented production. Particular attention was given to the textile park’s integrated production system covering cotton spinning, weaving, fabric processing and garment manufacturing. Governor Lawal believes that Zamfara State can benefit from the $370 billion worth of global cotton valuation by ensuring Zamfara grows more cotton and can also lead the charge by reviving moribund textile manufacturing hubs and value chain which could generate millions of jobs, expand non-oil exports and stimulate economic activities.
Governor Lawal’s participation in the delegation aligns with Zamfara’s recently launched 10-year Development Plan (2025–2034), which envisions the state becoming “a benchmark for transformative economic growth, not merely for Nigeria, but the continent of Africa”. The plan prioritises maximising Zamfara’s agricultural and natural resource strengths through partnerships, mechanised farming, agro-processing and value chains to create jobs, improve food security and reduce poverty-driven insecurity.
Governor Lawal was also in company of other state Governors like; Hope Uzodimma (Imo), Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Dikko Radda (Katsina), and Umar Namadi (Jigawa). The visit is expected to inform the development of garment-training facilities and dedicated processing infrastructure near agricultural production communities across Nigeria.
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