International Law and Recognition of State: US Foreign Policy Intrigues and Implications
The inland port has failed to meet its intended purpose
When the Baro Inland Port in Niger State was commissioned by the late President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 with much fanfare, it was hailed as a milestone that would unlock the economic potential of that part of Nigeria. Six years later, the facility stands as a symbol of Nigeria's chronic failure to translate infrastructure projects into tangible economic benefits. As of September 2025, the port remains dormant, its equipment rusting and its promise fading into yet another national disappointment.
The tragedy of Baro Port is that it was built at enormous cost. The structures are there. The warehouses exist. The cranes were installed. The problem lies in the absence of the basic support systems that would make the port functional. Despite repeated assurances, the port has been crippled by neglect, poor planning, and bureaucratic inertia. The obstacles are glaring. The roads leading to Baro are dilapidated, barely passable for trucks, and unsuitable for large-scale cargo movement. The historic railway line that once connected Baro to Kano has long collapsed, with restoration plans stalled for lack of funding. The River Niger itself -- the artery meant to carry goods -- is choked by silt, awaiting dredging that has been promised but never delivered.
Too often, projects like Baro are launched without a clear operational framework, resulting in duplication of efforts, wasted resources, and finger-pointing when things fail. In Baro's case, what should have been a flagship example of inland waterway transportation has instead become an expensive monument to inefficiency. At every level, the infrastructure needed to breathe life into the port is missing. Equally damaging has been the lack of coordination between government ministries and agencies.
Meanwhile, the current administration of President Bola Tinubu has promised action. In mid-2025, the House of Representatives established an ad-hoc committee to investigate the port's non-operation. The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, appeared before lawmakers in August to restate the administration's commitment. Plans have been floated to dredge the Niger, rehabilitate connecting roads, revive rail links, and even attract private investment through public-private partnerships (PPP). The Niger State Government has gone as far as seeking a sovereign guarantee to lure investors.
But Nigerians have heard this story before. Without clear timelines, adequate funding, and a binding framework for accountability, these renewed promises risk becoming yet another round of empty rhetoric. Baro Port cannot be revived by speeches alone. It requires deliberate policy action, sustained investment, and political will strong enough to break through the inertia that has kept it idle for nearly a decade.
The economic potential of Baro is too significant to ignore. An operational inland port could decongest Apapa and Tin Can ports, lower transportation costs, boost trade in the North-Central and beyond, and create jobs in logistics and supply chain industries. At a time when Nigeria is desperate for growth and diversification, leaving such a facility to rot is a betrayal of national interest. The cost of doing business in Nigeria ports ranks amongst the highest in the world with high demurrage charges as a result of a delay in cargo clearing process; high insurance premium of vessels coming to Nigeria and trucks conveying containers to and from the ports and higher shipping and terminal charges.
As part of the long-term solution to the crisis, the federal government must embrace intermodal transportation, which includes rail, inland waterways transportation. Also, the government must speed up the construction of port access roads, get the terminal operators and shipping companies to invest in holding bays where trucks can part pending when they are notified via a call up system to come to the port to drop empties or load cargo. Most importantly, the government must urgently collaborate with the private sector to build deep seaports. The handling capacity of ports in Nigeria is put at 60 million metric tonnes, while demand and usage are about 100 million metric tonnes. These are expected to rise with the increasing population, urban expansion and attendant demand for more markets.
On the Baro Port, the choice before the government is clear: either make it work or admit to Nigerians that it was never more than another white elephant project. The country deserves better than all these abandoned dreams and broken promises.