Rotimi Raimi-Hassan is the General Manager, Kaduna Inland Dry Port (KIDP), operator of Nigeria’s first dry port that evolved from being a bonded terminal, licensed by the Nigeria Customs Service. In this interview with GLORIA NWAFOR, he talks about what the country can do to achieve an effective cargo haulage movement, as well as the preparedness of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) to commence cargo rail transportation by March this year.

What measures should the Federal Government take to improve productivity and viability of dry ports in Nigeria? 
Government should first of all create an enabling working environment. It should also engage constantly with major stakeholders such as Customs, shipping companies and the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) to create effective and efficient working modalities for inland dry ports in Nigeria. Enforcing this will enhance the productivity and viability of inland dry ports in the country.

These are workable, as they will create employment and enhance revenue for both federa and state governments. There is nowhere a port is sited that does not become industrialised the state. Shipping business is concentrated majorly in Lagos and Port Harcourt, it should be decentralised to enable all inland dry ports in Kaduna, Kano, Funtua and others to thrive to stimulate economic activities in their various regions where inland dry ports are sited. This is the only way the Federal Government’s objective of decongesting Lagos seaport would work.

What suggestions do you have for the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy and the new Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council for effective inland dry ports operations?
The Nigeria Shippers’ Council has been supportive of the yearning for inland dry ports. They have been there with the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy since the inception of Kaduna Inland Dry Port. But the priority area ademands are the political backing to support inland dry ports in Nigeria to operate on the status of a dry port as it is being operated in other countries such as South Africa, Kenya and the United States of America. Operations of inland dry ports should be made seamless for hinterland shippers to derive more on the shipping business.

With rail system considered cheaper for cargo haulage than the road, how much has your organisation benefitted from the Nigeria Railway Corporation to enjoy these services?
The best and most cost-effective mode of transportation of containers is by rail. This is far cheaper when compared to road haulage, which is very high in cost and the safety is not guaranteed like rail haulage.
The NRC promised last year in November that they would commence cargo rail transportation, we are still looking forward to this. For any inland dry port to operate effectively and efficiently, it requires the support of a quality rail system and a sound locomotive with enough carriage wagons to move the containers in large numbers at a given time.
Imagine hundreds of laden containers moving daily from Durban seaport to Johannesburg railway station, where there are many terminals linked with rail lines, connected for dispatching and loading of import/export goods. We hope the NRC is working towards this direction. In my recent meeting with the NRC’s Director of Operations, he promised us that we should expect container-rail haulage movement by early March, this year. We hope this will go a long way to reduce pressure on our roads and complement it by reducing the high cost of transportation on import and export of goods to hinterland and seaport terminals respectively.

How has KIDP, as the first approved dry port in Nigeria, influenced the prospects of dry port operations in the country? 
Kaduna Inland Dry Port Limited, the first dry port operator in Nigeria, is a port of origin and port of destination. It was established and gazetted on May 26, 2015, and commissioned on January 4, 2018, by former President, Muhammadu Buhari. We charted the course and pioneered the journey for other dry ports to come up. Despite being the first and the best in Nigeria, we are happy that the government has gone ahead to promote the establishment of other dry ports in Kano, Katsina, Oyo and other states. Our little success motivated the government to do more. We have influenced the dry port business in Nigeria by leading the way for others to follow.

With the country battling economic challenges that have affected many businesses, how has your organisation fared in the last two years, especially, in bringing maritime and port activities to the hinterlands?
On some of the challenges we face in the course of our operations, we all know last year was an election year and that comes with some setbacks to trade, especially for those of us in the logistics business. Importation dropped by 40 per cent in the last quarter of 2023 and 2022. However, the major challenges we encountered were an increase in the exchange rate for payment of customs duty, high and unstable foreign exchange and difficulty in accessing it by importers, which affected trade.
Other challenges are the lack of rail for haulage services, the increase in diesel price that resulted in high transportation costs among others. The increase in petroleum product prices following the removal of subsidies also raised our cost of doing business. The challenges of vandalising rail lines and the rate of banditry and terrorism along Jebba to Kaduna on the Lagos – Kaduna – Kano axis, export forwarding has been affected for export activities to pick up at KIDP. This made exporters not to enjoy cheaper export haulage by rail to Apapa and other ports.
However, we have a mandate to bring maritime or port activities and benefits to the hinterland area, where they don’t have access to the sea and we have never lost focus on this mandate. Our strategic location with our profile of competence puts us in a vantage position to serve the business communities in Kaduna, Abuja and other proximate states. We are critical participants in the chambers of trade and commerce in Kaduna and Lagos. Since former President Muhamnadu Buhari commissioned our port in January 2018, as the first of its kind in West Africa, we have always worked relentlessly to add value to the nation’s economy and kept our promise of excellent service delivery to those in the hinterland.
We are also making conscious efforts to continually give exporters real value for their business and supporting the Federal Government’s initiative for economic diversification through non-oil export. KIDP is not doing badly despite various challenges experienced in 2023. We are the market leader in dry port business in West Africa. We have an incontrovertible position as the best in Nigeria because of our rich history from Inland Containers Nigeria Limited (ICNL), our parent company with experienced and dedicated staff who gives customers top quality service of moving containers from seaports in Lagos and Onne to Kaduna State.

Can you give an overview of how customs procedures affect your receiving cargoes from Lagos and Rivers ports to the dry port? 
The Customs modernisation system has improved documentation process, but there is a need for the authorities to create a mode of operation for inland dry ports in Nigeria and make the documentation process seamless. The inland dry port was established to decongest the seaport and make shipping activities easier for hinterland shippers by providing the same facility or platform at the seaport to those in the hinterland. It is also to facilitate international trade without any barrier. The operators of inland dry ports operate on the status of bonded warehouse terminal operations. This has made the dry port less attractive to hinterland shippers for patronage.
The best international standard is for stakeholders to fine-tune the procedural process of how cargoes destined for inland dry ports get treated preferentially. What I am saying in essence is that the imanifest concerning dry ports should be forwarded to customs to key into the NCS server before the arrival of the vessel while the customs officials at Lagos and Onne Customs Area Commands give express approval and direct enforcement to do needful of providing escort for transit surveillance to KIDP terminal. There at the inland dry port, the resident customs receive and tally the landing certificate for normal processes as obtained at the seaport.