By Praise Chinecherem
The Managing Director, National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Dr George Moughalu has reiterated the commitment of the Agency toward moving goods through the dredged channel of River Niger.
He assured the Agency’s readiness to encourage and assist companies willing to take advantage of dredged channel to keep it busy as well as generate revenue for the federal government.
In a statement in Onitsha, titled “NIWA ensures safe movement of goods to Onitsha River Port”, signed by NIWA’s General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Jibril Darda’u, Moghalu described the exercise as a welcome development.
He explained that NIWA was already collaborating with some Nigerian companies, including West African Ceramic Limited, in the movement of goods through the dredged channel of the River Niger, using its tugboats, piloted by NIWA officials onboard crew with escort from Inland Waterways Police for adequate security.
The statement partly reads, “In a recent development, the West African Ceramic Limited, a leading manufacturer of tiles in Nigeria under the brand name ‘Royal’ in Ajaokuta, Kogi State, has successfully moved goods (tiles) worth twenty two trailers to Onitsha River Port, Anambra State.
“In the exercise supervised by Jibril Darda’u, General Manager, Corporate Affairs, NIWA, Mr. Hassan Ilugbami, the Public Relations Officer of West African Ceramic Limited, the company took advantage of the dredged channel of River Niger in conveying the tiles on a barge M.V Vega owned by the company, using tugboat piloted by NIWA onboard crew with escort from Inland Waterways Police for adequate security.
“On returning, the barge carried laterite, a major raw material for the production of tiles that is worth twenty seven trailers back to Ajaokuta, Kogi State.
“West African Ceramic Limited is therefore, assuring NIWA that we will continue taking the advantage of the dredged channel of the River Niger, from Ajaokuta to Onitsha, which is 162KM in moving all our products, because is cheaper and safer.”
