…Unveils Regulation at 8th National Transport Conference

The Chartered Institute of Transport Administration (CIOTA) of Nigeria has announced a new regulation that will bar non-transport professionals from occupying sensitive leadership positions across the sector.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the administration’s National Publicity Secretary, Dr. (Mrs). Chizaoba Anyika and the National President, Prince Segun Ochuko Obayendo, after a press briefing held at the Board Room of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) Headquarters in Lagos on Friday.

According to the statement, the regulation, enacted under the CIOTA Act of the National Assembly, will be formally unveiled at the 8th National Transport Conference in Lagos.

“This regulation will bar anybody occupying a sensitive responsibility position in the transportation sector without being a transport professional,” Obayendo told journalists. “It is not a law. It is now an empowerment tool for all of us in the transportation sector to be proud that you are a professional.”

The regulation derives its authority from Act No. 27 of 2019, which chartered CIOTA and mandated it to regulate the practice of transportation in Nigeria. It will apply across both the public and private sectors.

“Even in organisations, we forbid you to be head of the transport department if you are not a transport professional,” Obayendo said. “By this regulation, you are hereby banned and forbidden to embark on such an adventure. We are ready to test the weight of this regulation in court.”

He described the current practice of appointing non-transport professionals to lead transport ministries, agencies and departments as an injustice. “You can be a lawyer and before you know it, you are commissioner of transport. But you cannot be a transport person and be commissioner for justice. What an injustice. In the same way, you can be a medical doctor and tomorrow you are made commissioner of transport. But you cannot be commissioner of health. Let us begin to have the right personnel in the right positions.”

Obayendo drew a historical parallel to underscore the urgency of reform. Germany outlawed informal transport operations in 1935. France followed in 1936. The United Kingdom did the same in 1937.

“That was about 90 years ago,” he said. “If that happened 90 years ago in Europe, I do not think we should wait for another 90 years to see that the transportation sector is not just professionalised, but also well formalised.”

He stressed that an informal sector cannot be integrated into a modern transport system. “We cannot seamlessly integrate an informal sector into the operation of a modern aviation system. We cannot totally integrate the last mile to a world-class railway station like the one I visited today; the Mobolaji Johnson Station. I was marvelled at what I saw. That investment must move.”

Obayendo challenged the widely cited figure that transportation contributes only 1.56 per cent to Nigeria’s GDP, arguing that the sector’s true value remains uncaptured because it is largely informal.

“In 2025, transportation facilitated and moved ₦157.8 trillion worth of goods and services. Export alone is about 80 per cent. Can you see our contribution?” he asked.

He called on the National Bureau of Statistics to reconsider how the sector’s contribution is measured. “We challenge NBS. It is not possible. What we were told is that because you are running it informally, we cannot capture the contribution. Inland waterways and the road transport sector carry 90 per cent of goods and services, and they are being run informally. There is no way you can capture it.”

He said the new regulation would help formalise the sector. “Our contribution will be well appreciated. We will see clearly what transport has contributed.”

Obayendo made an impassioned case for the sector’s centrality to national life. “If we make noise that this sector is indispensable, please do not contest it. You can do without many other sectors as a human being, as a society, as an economy, but you cannot do without transportation. Even when your last breath comes, you will still be transported.”

He added: “Transportation has been treated as if it is an orphan. It belongs to everybody. But we cannot continue like this. The end has come to treating our profession like an all-comers affair.”

The 8th National Transport Conference will be held under the theme “Integrated Multimodal Transport Systems for Sustainable Development of Nigeria.”

The conference will take place on Tuesday, October 13 and Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at the Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

It brings together policymakers, transport professionals, investors, academia, development partners and operators across road, rail, maritime, aviation, pipeline and inland waterways.

The conference will address national multimodal transport integration, urban mobility and metropolitan transport systems, logistics and supply chain competitiveness, Intelligent Transport Systems and digital innovation, green transportation and climate resilience, public-private partnerships and infrastructure financing, and professional capacity development.

The CIOTA Gazette and the new professional regulation will be formally unveiled at the conference. Letters will be sent to all organisations ahead of the unveiling. “We do not want people to say they are ignorant,” Obayendo said. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse. But we want to create awareness.”

“This is more than a conference. It is a national movement toward building an efficient, safe, affordable and sustainable transport system,” Obayendo said. “The recommendations from this conference will contribute to policy reforms and strengthen professional practice across the country.”

He called on the media to partner with CIOTA in sensitising Nigerians. “Your role in promoting informed public discourse is invaluable to us and to the success of this conference and beyond. Together, let us build an integrated multimodal transport system that connects communities, drives commerce, and secures a prosperous future for Nigeria.”