By Joyce Babayeju
Governor of Kano state, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has revealed that the state government spent more than 2.7 billion naira on the Dala Inland Dry Port in the state.
Speaking while unveiling the Logo in Abuja, the governor said the project had been on paper for over 20 years, adding that his administration is committed to turning the dream into reality.
“We reinstated the Dala Inland dry port, the project too was conceived over 20 years ago. It was just paperwork, when we came in, we decided to give it a political will. We were accosted, provided an enabling environment which was absolutely necessary. We have spent more than 2.7 billion naira, for painting of the whole site, providing water, electricity, and also providing security around the area.”
He noted that Kano is not the centre of commerce by accident, adding that it has been home to great traders and industrialists like Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Alhaji Abdussamad Isyaku Rabiu.
“Kano is today the most populous and yet most peaceful state, it is home to the most hospitable people. It has great economic potential. It accounts for at least 70 percent of non oil exports in the country.”
“We in Kano realized the humongous opportunities being presented by the efforts of the Government of President Muhammad Buhari and resolved to take appropriate steps to fully key into them. That is the singular reason why we moved in to actualize the 20,000 TEU Dala Inland Dry Port Project which had been in the pipeline for twenty years before we came into office.
“We realized that the Kano Exporters which include exporters from our neighbouring states and neighbouring countries notably, Niger and Chad Republics and Northern Cameroon suffer untold hardship and losses in the process of receiving their imports or forwarding their exports.
“The hardship coupled with the exorbitant transport costs has pushed so many very committed businessmen out of business. It is sad to note and to agree with the statement by one of the eminent sons of Kano, Alhaji Abdussamad Isyaku Rabiu, when he said, “it is cheaper to transport a container from China to Lagos than to transport the same container from Lagos to Kano.
“We appreciate the Rail revolution project which shall change the dynamics and also particularly, the Dala Inland Dry Port which shall be the game-changer. With a functional Rail line from Lagos or other seaports to Kano inland port and from Kano inland port to the Niger Republic etc.
“The imports for the zone shall be at
competitive prices while there will be rapid exponential continuing growth of non oil exports which shall greatly grow our national GDP. The economic benefit of Dala Inland Dry Port cannot, therefore, be overemphasized.
“That is why when my administration received a follow-up letter from the FGN Coordinating Agency for the Inland Port requesting us to provide critical infrastructure to the land for the project, we did not hesitate in doing so. We set out aggressively to ascertain first the commitment of the Concessionaires to the project and the status of the project.
“We were convinced that the concessionaires were committed and the major hindrance to the project actualization were two, namely, servicing the land with critical infrastructure and the required declaration of the Port as a Port of Origin and Destination”, Ganduje said.
