By Steve Agbota
The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), in collaboration with the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), aims to achieve a seven-day cargo dwell time to boost trade at the Lagos seaports.
This was made known during a recent three-day high-level stakeholder engagement in Lagos titled, “Achieving a 7-Day Cargo Dwell Time.” The session, which brought together the Ports and Customs Efficiency Committee (PCEC) under the Business Environment Enhancement Programme Accelerator (BEEPA) framework and was hosted by the NPA, was geared towards streamlining port processes to bolster the ease of doing business.
The engagement, which was held at the Lagos Port Complex (LPC) in Apapa, followed an extensive “shadowing” exercise where officials observed real-time vessel berthing and cargo clearance operations at both the Tin Can Island and Lagos Port complexes.
Speaking at the event, PEBEC Director-General, Zahrah Mustapha, emphasised that the session was designed to move beyond identifying hurdles towards implementing long-overdue practical solutions.
“Nigeria loses significantly every day due to operational inefficiencies. These are not just numbers; they represent missed opportunities, jobs not created, and delayed economic growth. This reform is about resilience and unlocking the nation’s economic potential,” Mustapha said.
Mustapha noted that the initiative integrates both government regulators and private sector stakeholders to ensure transparency and accountability, with the ultimate goal of reducing cargo dwell time and improving vessel turnaround time.
Earlier, the Managing Director of the NPA, Abubakar Dantsoho, reiterated the authority’s commitment to supporting PEBEC’s mandates.
He highlighted the NPA’s progress, including collaborating with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to deploy the Port Community System (PCS), which will serve as the digital backbone for the National Single Window, a move expected to eliminate manual bottlenecks and synchronise port operations.
Recall that the NPA achieved a 100 per cent success rate in PEBEC reforms, ranking fifth among agencies in 2025 with an 84.2 per cent compliance rating.
The outcomes of this engagement are expected to be implemented within the coming months.
By closing the operational gaps identified during the port inspections, the NPA and PEBEC aim to create a more competitive maritime environment that attracts investment and facilitates seamless trade.
