2025 Budget: Oyetola seeks adequate funding for marine, blue economy sector

Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, has presented N11.77 billion capital budget proposal and N453,856 for overhead to the National Assembly for appropriation.

Oyetola made the presentation on Tuesday in Abuja to a joint committee of the National Assembly.

The committees concerned were the Senate Committee on Marine Transport, and the House of Representatives Committee on Harbour, Maritime and Safety Education and Administration, Inland waterways and Shippings.

The minister, however, appealed to the joint committee for greater budgetary provision, stating that quantum investment through the capital budget was necessary for it to deliver on its lofty mandate and potential.

“Today’s budget defense is in respect of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and the laying of the Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) budget.

“This includes the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA).

“Others are the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron, and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN).

“As a newly created ministry, our initial focus is to set up enduring structures and systems for the effective management of the blue economy sector,” he said.

He said that their were notable deficiencies in the sector, such as general infrastructure decay, silted river courses, inadequate fish production and inadequate river crafts require major attention.

He said that the ministry was, therefore, initiating several projects and programmes aimed at addressing these challenges.

“We are reinforcing the ministry’s oversight and monitoring mandate over its agencies, and all of these require greater budgetary provisions,” Oyetola said.

He said that major projects had been outlined, including replacing of rickety wooden boats used for commercial transport with standardised crafts, and provision of life jackets to riverine communities to boost safe water transportation.

He also disclosed plans for capital dredging on selected locations at major rivers, which required huge budget.

He said that all projects were deliberately tied to governments capital budgets to quarantee fast tracked delivery and assured food security.

The minister said that the ministry and its agencies, under the 2025 budget, sought to consolidate and sustain on the achievements and performances recorded in the immediate past year.

He said that the NPA, NIMASA, and NSC were fully self-funding and made significant remittances to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

He, however, said that NIWA and Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron derived their funding from both the federal budget and Internally Generated Revenue.

According to him, based on passionate plea, CRFFN has been readmitted into the budget for funding, but erroneously under the Federal Ministry of Transport, which needs to be rectified.

Oyetola also said that the five agencies under the Fisheries and Aquaculture sector, which included Institutes and Colleges were expected to come fully under the ministry in the 2025 Budqet.

He said that the ministry was set to focus on ports infrastructural development, increase fish production, maritime safety and security and Information technology deployment to improve operation and revenue generation.

He said that it would also address human capacity building and the effective technical and economic regulation to ensure the strengthening of blue economy in Nigeria.

Oyetola appreciated the National Assembly for its unflinching support and cooperation, and urged it to consider the propositions based on the compelling needs of the ministry.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Marine Transport, Mr Wasiu Eshinlokun, said that the budget proposal seemed inadequate to carry out certain projects, such as dredging, which according to him is capital intensive.

Eshinlokun said that the budget proposal would be reviewed by the appropriation committee, and the ministry would be allocated appropriate funding.

He aadvised he minister to ensure that capital intensive projects reflected in its 2026 budget proposal in order to ensure adequate appropriation.