From Coastline to Hinterland: How the NPA Is Rewiring Nigeria for Export-Led Growth
By LOD Onyeji At the 21st Abuja International Trade Fair, the Nigerian Ports Authority made a quiet but structurally significant argument: Nigeria's economic resilience will not be secured at the quayside alone. Managing Director/CEO Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, speaking on NPA Special Day under the theme "Resilient Trade, Taxation, and the Economy," announced a two-track reform to cut non-oil export bottlenecks — the integration of Inland Dry Ports into NPA's operational mandate, and the full operationalisation of dedicated Export Processing Terminals as one-stop shops for sorting, packaging, quality certification and customs documentation. The logic is hinterland economics. With Federal Government approval transferring IDP management to NPA, exporters in Abuja and the north-central and north-west corridors no longer need to truck raw commodities 600-900km to Lagos or Port Harcourt before documentation. Clearance now happens inland, cargo moves sealed to the seaport. ...
