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Port Reforms: Oyetola Sets Up Ministerial Committee

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21 hours ago

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Minister Oyetola
BY KESIENNA SHEPHERDS
​In a decisive move to enforce institutional clarity across Nigeria’s maritime sector, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr. Adegboyega Oyetola, has directed the immediate transfer of all Inland Dry Port (IDP) functions from the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
​The policy shift follows President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent assent to the Nigeria Ports Economic Regulatory Agency (NPERA) Act, 2026, which formally transmuted the NSC into a statutory economic regulator.
​To ensure a seamless realignment, Minister Oyetola ordered the immediate constitution of a ministerial committee to oversee the transition and divest NPERA of operational, promotional, and developmental duties incompatible with its new regulatory role.
​Addressing the rationale behind the directive, Oyetola emphasized that an economic regulator must maintain absolute impartiality to foster trust and investor confidence within the port industry.
​”A regulator cannot function as an operator and, at the same time, be expected to be perceived as an unbiased referee,” Oyetola stated in a release by his Special Adviser, Dr. Bolaji Akinola. “It is therefore important that the new economic regulator is freed from functions that are not compatible with economic regulation.”
​Under its new charter, NPERA will focus exclusively on core economic regulatory duties:
​Tariff & Charge Regulation: Preventing arbitrary cost hikes across port terminals.
​Market Competition & Licensing: Licensing operators and curbing monopolistic practices.
​Service Standards & User Protection: Enforcing commercial standards and resolving industry disputes.
​Consolidating Dry Ports Under NPA
​The transfer ends the NSC’s 12-year interim regulatory tenure, during which it held operational responsibility for promoting dry ports.
​Reassuring industry operators, Oyetola affirmed that transferring the IDP portfolio to the NPA is intended to accelerate dry port development. As the custodian of port infrastructure, the NPA is strategically positioned to integrate hinterland dry ports directly into the nation’s wider maritime and rail logistics network.
​The newly inaugurated ministerial committee will supervise the reassignment of assets, personnel, and operational frameworks to guarantee a smooth transition without disrupting port activities.
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