The Minister for Transport, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, has said that the Federal Government is determined to fully exploit the opportunities in the transportation sector.
This is just as he hinted that as first step towards tapping the potential in the sector the Federal Government would sponsor a bill that open up the industry to both local and foreign investors.
The transportation industry, he added does not only hold the key to any economy but that it also form the basis of all socio-economic interactions.
He said that this shortly after a fact finding tour of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos in company of the Minister of Aviation (State), Alhaji Hadi Sirika and aviation agency chief executive officers.
“As a first step, the government will pursue the enactment of legislation that will open up the sector to new investments that will lead to economic prosperity. Among the bills that are ready for legislative action is the National Transport Commission Bill – an act to provide for the establishment of a National Transport Commission as an independent multi-modal economic regulator and other related matters. This bill among others has been approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in March 2014.” He disclosed
Nigeria like other countries, he stated suffered from inadequate transportation but that what makes that of Nigeria different is that its transport sector is worse compared to that of other nations.
He listed the problem facing the Nigerian transport system to include bad roads, inadequate fleet of busses and trucks; irregular and inadequate trains and airplanes services and congested ports.
Also related to these problems are: physical problems such as the dearth of suitably trained transport managers and planners, capital restructuring bottlenecks, serious issues of institutional reforms and ineffective traffic regulations.
“The transportation sector holds the key to any economy and forms the basis of all socio-economic interactions. Like many other countries, Nigeria suffers the bane of inadequate transportation but perhaps worse than other countries. Nigeria’s huge population puts enormous pressure on a very poor transport infrastructure that bedevils the nation. he lamented
Amaechi argued that the 1.41 per cent the transport sector contributes to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was unacceptable going by the several opportunities it has, adding that for the industry to play a major role in the economy of Nigeria, urgent steps must be taken to exploit the opportunities that abound.
According to him, “The contribution of the transport sector to the Gross National Product is an unacceptable 1.41 per cent. For a sector that plays a major role in the nation’s development, there is an urgent need to exploit the opportunities that abound within the sector to improve its contribution to the national economy.”
To buttress his point, the Transport Minister cited countries like South Korea and Singapore, who according to him have built their economies around a vibrant transportation sector, adding that although Nigeria is blessed with multiple modes of transportation, which is the envy of many, these potential have largely remained untapped.