Nigeria losing investors to poor transport infrastructure – experts

Rising from its Executive Stakeholders’ Forum in Abuja, the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT), Abuja Branch, has said the poor state of transportation infrastructure across the country was costing Nigeria huge investments opportunities.

CILT is also saying this situation was making the country noncompetitive as the cost of doing business kept rising as the cost of moving goods rise.

Mr Reynolds Shodeinde, Assistant Director of Administration, CILT, who spoke at the forum, said that an efficient transport infrastructure and effective logistics were prerequisite for local businesses and foreign investors to operate successfully.

The theme of the forum was “Vision and Strategy for the 21st Century Logistics and Transport Organisation’’.

“Researchers have found that an improvement in infrastructure will decrease costs by 11 to 12 per cent, more so in the industry under review to which we all belong,” he noted.

“Conscious of these facts, Nigerian Government is taking proactive measures to reduce the country’s logistics costs in relation to its gross domestic product, by paying special attention to developing appropriate logistics and transport policies to accommodate the needs of economic development,’’ he said.

Shodeinde commended the government for its recent effort in addressing some of the infrastructure gaps in the marine, rail and aviation sub-sectors of the economy.

Mr Alex Okosun, Abuja Branch Chairman of CILT, said that the economic prosperity of every nation was tied to effectiveness and efficiency of its transport sector, adding that standard infrastructure was required to meet such demand.

He also called for standard transport regulations and proper implementation of the existing laws, saying that transport was highly unregulated in Nigeria.