"Opening up a new landscape for Nigeria's economic development"

Source: People's Daily

The breakwater extends 2.5 km into the sea, with the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean and the port of Lekki in Nigeria inside the dike. On the shore of the port, there are 5 huge quay bridges. Not long ago, the Lekki deep-water port project in Nigeria, invested, constructed and operated by China Harbor Engineering Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "China Harbor"), held a port opening ceremony in Lagos State. When put into operation, Lekki Port became not only Nigeria's first modern deep-water port, but also one of the largest in West Africa.

"The first automated port in the country for fast customs clearance"

Located in the Lagos Free Trade Zone in Nigeria, Lekki Port is jointly developed by China Harbor and Nigerian Ports Authority, and was completed in October 2022 after more than two years of hard work, after starting construction in June 2020. The project adopts the BOOT (Build-Own-Operate-Transfer) model, with a concession period of 45 years and an annual design capacity of 1.2 million standard containers.

Lagos is an important hub for international trade in the Gulf of Guinea and West Africa. For a long time, the terminal facilities in the port areas of the state have been insufficient, the rear collection and evacuation conditions are limited, the logistics cost is high, and the import and export trade and economic development have been greatly restricted. The completion of the Port of Lekki will change these situations. "When the Port of Lekki is operational, it will significantly reduce cargo detention time and become the first automated port in the country to quickly clear customs," said Bela Coco, Director General of the Nigerian Ports Authority. ”

Nigerian President Buhari said that Lekki Port will "open up a new pattern for Nigeria's economic development, strongly promote the export of Nigeria's local products, especially agricultural products, and increase the country's foreign exchange earnings". The port will also create a large number of jobs and contribute to poverty reduction goals. Nigeria's federal Minister of Information and Culture Ryi said the overall economic benefits of Lekki Port are expected to reach $361 billion over 45 years.

At the opening ceremony, Lagos State Governor Babajid Sanwo-Oulu said that Lekki Port is the largest port in Nigeria, which can accommodate the world's largest container ships, and after operation, it will strongly promote Nigeria's foreign trade and inject new impetus into economic development. Earlier, at the completion ceremony, he praised China Port for efficiently completing the project on schedule, and said that Lekki Port will create nearly 200,000 direct and indirect jobs for Nigeria in the next few years, effectively unleashing the potential of Nigeria's economic development. "There is no doubt that the Port of Lekki will make Lagos a maritime logistics hub in Central and West Africa."

"It's the rainiest rainy season we've had in decades"

The villages of Aitto and Ayton are less than 3 km from the port of Lekki. For decades, during the rainy season, the land and houses of some villagers in the two villages have been eroded or washed away by the waves.

Faced with this problem that plagued the local villagers, China Harbor adjusted the original design after investigation and exploration, adding two new east breakwaters with a total of 539 meters, and adding nearly 800,000 square meters of artificial beach on the east side of the port.

Shortly after the 2022 rainy season, the village chiefs of the two villages came to thank them with their fish and simp: "This is the most secure rainy season we have had in decades, all the land and houses are intact, thank the Chinese companies for everything they have done for us." ”

This is a microcosm of the Lekki Port project helping to develop local people's livelihood. According to Hucklum, Dutch engineering director of the Lekki Port Project, during the port construction stage, the project has provided about 2,000 local jobs, trained a group of hydraulic engineering, port and shipping industry talents, and achieved more than 80% localization of technical and management positions. Through systematic training and guidance, most of the local staff have mastered more professional and modern work skills.

Magbon Village is located next to Lekki Port, where many young people work. "Chinese companies respect our culture. Our young people are proud to work in Lekki Harbour, and the unmarried lads who work here are also the preferred objects of many girls. ”

"We are proud to be a neighbour of Port Lekkie." Speaking about the changes that the port construction has brought to the village, Daouda gushes, "Benefiting from the port of Leki, Magbang village has completely changed, clean and beautiful beaches attract a lot of tourists, and the vacant houses in the village are rented out. ”

Vincent, a 35-year-old villager in Magbang village, opened a roadside shop selling food and clothing. "Before, I had to fish and pick coconuts to support my family. Now that I have more income, my children don't have to go hungry, and I've built a new house. Watching life get better and better day by day, Vincent's heart blossomed.

In the development of Lekki Port, Chinese enterprises pay attention to protecting the local ecology. Every year on World Environment Day, China Harbour disseminates environmental protection knowledge to villagers and works with villagers to clean up marine debris. "Chinese companies attach great importance to environmental protection and let villagers know how to protect the environment and promote the green development of the local economy." Falikamango, president of the African Association for the Sustainable Development of the Oceans, said.

"It will give a strong impetus to infrastructure construction in West Africa"

With the operation of the port, the construction of "port area city integration" in Lekki area has also begun to take shape. The construction of the Lekki Free Trade Zone, the Lagos Free Trade Zone and the Dangoth Refinery in Nigeria is progressing in an orderly manner, and the new international airport project is also scheduled to be launched this year. Wu Di, deputy general manager of China Harbor, said that with the development of Lekki Port, Lagos Lekki District has become a hot spot for investment. The commercial operation of Lekki Port is promising, and it is believed that this deep-water port will usher in new development opportunities for Nigeria.

Hassan Bello, CEO of the Nigerian Shipping Council, said that the port of Lekki is crucial to Nigeria's economic prosperity, which will completely change the face of Nigeria's shipping industry, effectively promote the country's economic growth, and bring important changes to the shipping and economic pattern of Nigeria and even the entire Central and West African countries.

The Port of Lekki is a joint venture between China Harbor and CMA CGM, and is a demonstration project for Sino-French third-party market cooperation. The Chinese side has expertise in port construction and maintenance, the French side has resource advantages such as port operation and shipping routes, coupled with the active participation of the Nepalese side, forming a multi-party cooperation and complementary advantages, so that the port of Lekki has a good operating prospect. Dan Rick-Morse, Head of Lekki Freeport Terminal Operations, a joint venture between China Harbor and CMA CGM, said: "The Port of Lekki is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and is a new generation of container terminals that will give a strong boost to infrastructure in West Africa. ”

Cui Jianchun, Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, said that Lekki Port is a specific practice of Chinese enterprises to change from project contracting to investment and operation, which can well meet the needs of Nigeria's economic development. After the operation of Lekki Port, it is expected to become a new engine to promote Nigeria's economic development, which is of great significance to deepening the "Belt and Road" in Africa in the future.

(People's Daily Abuja News reporter Jiang Xuan)

People's Daily(Version 03, 2023-03-27)