Ibom seaport to attract $2.5 bn investment

The Ibom seaport in Akwa Ibom State is expected to attract $2.5 billion investment when the project is completed.

To be executed under the Public Private Partnership between the federal government and a group of investors, contract for the project which on completion would help in decongesting Lagos ports will be awarded in April this year.

Chidi Izumah, Acting Director General of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) stated this during a high level stakeholders retreat on Public Private partnership (PPP) held in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.

“Ibom Deep Seaport is a PPP project that is going to bring $2.5bn dollars of investment and change the landscape of infrastructure in the country.

“It will have solutions to traffic congestion in Lagos port because those goods that normally go to Lagos will come here; this has been done in partnership with ICRC.

“I can assure you before April, the contract for Ibom Deep Seaport will be signed and the approved consortium will start immediately.

“The President is committed to developing infrastructure, without infrastructure, we cannot have inclusive growth and development.

“The stakeholders conference is to redefine our strate- gies and create investment to develop infrastructure across all parts of Nigeria,” Izuwah said.

In her remarks, Imeh Okon, senior special assistant to the president on infrastructure said the Federal Government has invested about N2.7 trillion in the development of infrastructure in the last three years.

According to her, some of the dividends include the the N100bn that has been injected into rail project.

She said that the federal government was committed to the development of infrastructure in the country, adding that infrastructural development enhances growth.

The presidential aide, however, said that revenue generation was a major challenge since the country depended on oil as its main source of revenue and the price of oil was not stable.

“So we are going to partner with the private sector to develop most of our priority infrastructure projects.”

In his opening remarks, Gabriel Aduda, the Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs, office of the Secretary to the Federal Government said that the retreat was for the improvement of infrastructure and its delivery in the country.

Aduda hoped that the retreat would galvanise and look at the legal framework and operational framework to ensure sustainable infrastructure programme in the country.