Port to rail connectivity is part of the West African nation’s national rail line program, set to be unveiled by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Nigeria has a plan to link all the country’s seaports to rail lines and the plan – geared towards ensuring seamless movement of goods in and out of the ports – is at an advanced stage according to transport officials.
The initiative is part of a national rail line program to be unveiled by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on or before October 1, 2025.
“The plan is to connect all the seaports in Nigeria to rail lines,” said Kayode Opeifa, Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), during a recent live televised interview in Abuja.
The major ports in Nigeria include Lagos Port Complex and Tin Can Island Port Complex both in Lagos, Calabar Port Complex in Cross River State, the Delta Ports in Warri, and the Rivers Port Complex and Onne Port Complex amongst others.
“The train currently gets to Lagos Port, which is both on narrow gauge and standard gauge but the main container terminal at the Tin Can Port, will eventually get connected,” said Opeifa, adding that the plan extends to linking the Lekki Deep Sea Port to the Lagos-Kano line via Kajola.
Lekki is the deepest seaport in Nigeria, giving it an upper hand in serving as a transshipment hub for the nation and the West African region.
Opeifa did not reveal the expected cost of the connection initiatives.
“The plan is extensive and like I said, before October 1st, the President will eventually unveil the national rail plan for the ports,” he said further.
Linking ports to rail lines is seen as critical to Africa’s industrial growth.
“The future of African industrial growth won’t be scattered — it’ll be zoned, connected, and investor-ready,” said Davida Ademuyiwa, an International Trade & Investment Facilitator and Business Growth Strategist in a LinkedIn post recently.
The 2024 Consolidated Management Report of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) highlighted a significant improvement in Nigerian ports.
Cargo traffic surged by 45.1%, rising from 71,213,197 metric tons in 2023 to 103,336,863 metric tons in 2024.
“This increase reflects heightened trade activities and improved operational efficiencies. Lekki Port stood out as the leader in cargo throughput growth, recording a 2,160.8% increase, followed by Onne Port with a 9.4% rise and Tin Can Island Port with 7.3% growth. Notably, Liquid Bulk cargo accounted for the largest share at 55.6%, while containerized cargo contributed 20.9%,” notes the report.
In terms of ship traffic over the same period, Nigerian ports recorded impressive gains. The number of ship calls increased by 5.6%, growing from 3,791 in 2023 to 4,005 in 2024.
“This was accompanied by an even more substantial 15.4% growth in Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT), which climbed from 123,660,278 to 142,660,418 tons. Lekki Port again led the growth trend, registering a 477.6% increase in ship calls, while Onne Port experienced a 5.8% rise.”
The total container throughput also saw a significant 9.7% increase, with 1,744,972 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) handled in 2024, compared to 1,591,194 TEUs in 2023, as transshipment container traffic saw an impressive 136.5% increase, indicating a growing role for Nigerian ports in regional cargo redistribution.