TMSG: Tinubu’s five-port corridor’ll spread economic growth
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TMSG: Tinubu’s five-port corridor’ll spread economic growth
By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman
The Tinubu Media Support Group, TMSG has described President Bola Tinubu’s five-port trade corridor initiative as a creative economic strategy capable of spreading growth, productivity and development across Nigeria.
The group said the initiative, which seeks to integrate road, rail, maritime and logistics infrastructure, would create a more conducive environment for investment while positioning Nigeria as a major maritime gateway and logistics hub for West and Central Africa.
In a statement by its Chairman, Emeka Nwankpa, and Secretary, Dapo Okubanjo, on Thursday, the group said the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was part of a broader plan for an integrated nationwide trade corridor.
TMSG said, “When President Bola Tinubu came up with the idea of reviving the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, little did many Nigerians know that it was part of a larger plan for a nationwide integrated trade corridor.
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“It is now public knowledge that the coastal highway is part of a network of road, rail and maritime network to link major deep sea ports in Lagos, Ondo, Akwa Ibom, Port Harcourt and Calabar as part of efforts to make Nigeria a maritime gateway and logistics hub of West and Central Africa.”
The group said the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto-Badagry Expressway were central to the initiative, with the former expected to provide a major road link to the five ports.
It added that the Lagos-Kano, Kaduna-Kano, Abuja-Kaduna and Kano-Maradi rail corridors would connect the ports from the Lagos axis to landlocked trade hubs in the Sahel.
According to TMSG, the long-term objective is to connect Nigeria’s ports to markets in countries including Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso, Sudan and the Central African Republic.
The group also identified the proposed Port Harcourt-Maiduguri rail corridor as an important component of the Eastern Corridor, linking eastern maritime gateways with northern Nigeria.
It further noted the role of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas project, which was initiated under former President Muhammadu Buhari but is being pursued to completion by the Tinubu administration.
TMSG said the integrated corridors would stimulate economic activities along their routes and attract investment into warehousing, logistics, manufacturing, distribution and agro-processing.
“At the heart of the Tinubu five-port initiative is an integrated maritime, rail, road and logistics network to not only reposition Nigeria as a major gateway to African markets, but to also create direct and indirect jobs as well as spread national development,” the group said.
The group added that the initiative would stimulate local economies along the various corridors and improve national productivity.
It said the plan was consistent with Tinubu’s objective of moving Nigeria towards a $1tn economy, citing his administration’s efforts to create a pro-business environment.
TMSG also compared the initiative with Tinubu’s record as Lagos State governor, arguing that his administration at the time helped create the conditions for the emergence of the Lekki Free Trade Zone.
The group noted that the zone now hosts major economic projects, including the Dangote Refinery and the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
