From left: Belgian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Pieter LeenKnegt, receives a plaque from the Managing Director of the NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko during a working visit to the Authority’s Marina, Lagos headquarters.

The Nigerian Ports Authority is set to partner the Belgian Government towards optimising the country’s existing seaports as well as developing new ones.

Managing Director/CEO of the NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko made this disclosure when he played host to the Belgian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Pieter LeenKnegt, who was on a working visit to the Authority’s corporate headquarters on Marina, Lagos.

The Managing Director assured the visiting diplomat that the current leadership of the Authority under his watch is leaving no stone unturned in its determination to upgrade and optimise the country’s existing port infrastructure as well as developing new one in line with efforts to increase the regional competitiveness of the seaports.

Recall that following the coming on stream of the Lekki Deep Seaport, which is a fully automated seaport, the Authority had secured the approval of the Federal Executive Council FEC, for the development of Badagry and Ondo Seaports.

Speaking earlier, the Belgian Ambassador noted that his country was willing to partner Nigeria developing new seaports as well as optimising the existing ones, arguing that Nigeria occupies a strategic position in the entire African continent.

He commended the Bello-Koko-led management for the numerous giant strides it has taken in terms of upgrading existing port infrastructure including the upgrading of internal port access roads, the control towers for both Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports as well as fine-tuning the truck electronic call-up system, which has led to efficient traffic management, which has cleared the notorious Apapa gridlocks, among several other initiatives.