Stakeholders in Nigeria's maritime and logistics sector have called for deliberate policy reforms to strengthen indigenous shipping capacity, reduce port inefficiencies, and formalise cross-border maritime transactions. They warned that continued reliance on informal trade is distorting Nigeria's economic records and limiting growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The experts also urged urgent investment in multimodal transport systems, improved port infrastructure, enhanced maritime security, and harmonised trade documentation across agencies. They argued that the Gulf of Guinea corridor holds significant untapped economic potential that remains largely unaccounted for due to informal trading practices.
The concerns were raised at the 2026 conference of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Nigeria (CILT), Cross River State chapter, held yesterday in Calabar with the theme, 'Promoting Coastal Maritime Trade with Littoral Countries Along the Gulf of Guinea.'
Oyeyemi Highlights Challenges
Speaking at the conference, National President of CILT Nigeria, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, said Nigeria's strategic coastal location, 800-kilometre shoreline, major ports, and inland waterways placed it at the centre of maritime trade within West and Central Africa. According to him, the country is not fully benefiting from this advantage due to weak policy coordination and the dominance of informal trade across neighbouring countries such as Cameroon, Ghana, Benin, and Togo.
He said, 'Nigeria's coastal trade is failing to reflect in GDP because most of the transactions are informal. The conversion of informal trade to formal trade is what will give us prosperity. Nigeria is the greatest loser in this arrangement.'
Oyeyemi called for stronger collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, Customs Service, and other regulatory agencies to improve documentation processes and ensure that trade within the Gulf of Guinea is properly structured and accounted for. He also highlighted persistent challenges including weak indigenous shipping capacity, high port charges, poor rail-port integration, and the continued movement of heavy cargo by road, warning that these issues were damaging infrastructure and reducing efficiency across the logistics chain.
Call for Implementation
In her welcome address, Chairman of CILT Calabar Branch, Aniefiok Iton, described the conference as a strategic platform designed to reposition maritime trade as a key driver of regional economic transformation. She said the Gulf of Guinea represented a major trade corridor linking several coastal nations but noted that inefficiencies, weak coordination, and underutilised infrastructure had limited its full potential.
Iton added that Cross River State was uniquely positioned to serve as a maritime gateway due to its coastal geography, inland waterways, and access to multimodal transport systems, urging stakeholders to move from policy discussions to implementation. She called for stronger regional partnerships, capacity building, and investment in logistics infrastructure, stressing that sustainable maritime growth would depend on collective action among littoral states.
Government Commitment
Representing Governor Bassey Otu, the Commissioner for Transport, Ekpenyong Cobham, said the state government was actively repositioning Cross River as a maritime and logistics hub in the Gulf of Guinea. Cobham disclosed that a prefeasibility study showed that Ikang Beach in Bakassi Local Government Area records about 1,940 daily passengers, compared to 827 in Calabar, describing it as evidence of rising maritime activity and economic opportunity along the coastal corridor.
He added that the proposed Bakassi Deep Sea Port would serve as a catalyst for industrialisation, job creation, and expanded regional trade, with value chains covering agro-processing, manufacturing, cargo handling, warehousing, shipping services, and allied financial and logistics sectors.
