Emmanuel Thomas
July 16, 2015 – Lagos State Governor Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode today said his administration will put machineries in place to ensure that he commences construction of the Badagry Deep Seaport in the next two months.
Ambode who was speaking shortly after inspecting projects in the Badagry axis said the Badagry seaports will be the biggest in Africa continent. Commencement of the Badagry Deep Seaport in September will bring to two, total number of deep seaports embarked upon by the state government in a period of eight years.
The governor also vowed that he will complete the project in the next four years as in conjunction with the 10-lane Badagry Expressway, which has provision for light rail in the median.
He said the Badagry Deep Seaport project will open up commerce and create employment in the axis. The deep seaport will be situated in over 1000 hectares of land and about 500 metres away from ‘Point of No Return’, the slave camp where slaves were bundled into ships and for onward journey to Europe and America.
” Just like what has been said, this is the proposed site for the biggest Deep Sea Port in Africa. The land space for the Deep Sea Port is over 1000 hectares of which we have just been told that there’s going to be a free trade zone and then a container terminal that we are going to have here.
” We already know that the investors have done the best they can. We have Mearsk in the Bouquet of investors who have signed on to this project and what that means for us is that we are going to have the largest cargo container port in Africa, situated in Badagry.
“That means a lot of us in terms of employment. It means a lot for us also in terms of new settlement like it has been said, we hope that in the next two months we’re coming to start this project here.”
Ambode explained that he personally came to see the project, stating that it is part of promise aimed at bringing development to the communities in that axis. Stressing the need for compensation, he said there are twelve communities that are involved and that they will be resettled within the area with adequate compensation.
“We would ensure that every community is duly compensated and in any direction that we have one or two that are still dialoguing, we would protect their interests, we would also ensure that they are protected in this project and it would be long-lasting for generations yet unborn.
“I want to assure the Aivoji community that they are safe and that the administration that we have we would continually support them and protect their interests. Like you have also been told this project is 500 metres away from the point of no return which is also a tourist attraction for us,so we have decided to protect that particular place to make sure that tourism is also complemented in this project.
“With a Deep Sea Port project like this,it means that there would be new settlements in Badagry, new towns and the standard of living is positively affected by this kind of project.
“That is why we want to appeal to everybody including every Lagosian, before I came here, I inspected the Mile 2 Badagry Expressway Project which is a 10-lane project. There is no way we want to do the Deep Sea Port project here if we do not finish the Mile 2 Badagry Expressway project.
“I just want to assure you that simultaneously, those two projects will start in earnest and then we will use that to create jobs for our people and also increase the GDP of the Lagos economy and strongly within the next four years you will see a dramatic change in this axis of Lagos.”
