The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is a federal government agency in charge of overseeing and running Nigeria’s ports. The major seaports in Nigeria are the Lagos Port Complex, Tin Can Island Port Complex, Calabar Port Complex, Delta Ports in Warri, Delta State, Rivers Port Complex, Onne Port Complex, and Lagos Port Complex, all in Lagos State.
The Federal Ministry of Transportation is in charge of regulating their operations. The NPA collaborates with various governmental agencies to carry out its operations. The Nigerian Ports Authority‘s headquarters are in Lagos, Nigeria, at 26/28 Marina.
About Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA)
Nigerian ports started operating and developing in the middle of the 19th century. Beginning with the establishment of Lagos Lagoon in early 1909, efforts were made to provide facilities for oceangoing vessels. The South West’s Apapa Port was designated for development in 1913, and work on the port’s first four 548.64-meter deep water berths started in 1921.
With the discovery of coal at Enugu, the Port of Port Harcourt was conceptualized and later opened for commerce in 1913. Following the completion of the Enugu railway line in 1916, four berths measuring 1920 feet each were built in Port Harcourt to support both the importation of goods and the quick extraction and ultimate exportation of coal. The Ports Act of 1954 created the Nigerian Port Authority as a continuous Public Corporation in order to address institutional weaknesses that bordered on a lack of a cogent policy framework because port development was done on an as-needed basis due to changes in the volume and demand of seaborne trade.
The landlord model was introduced for all of Nigeria’s ports in 2003 as part of the Federal Government of Nigeria’s initiative to increase port efficiency. Due to this, 25 terminals were granted to private terminal operators under lease agreements that ranged from 10 to 25 years. A Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) arrangement was one of the concessions. The prior eight ports—Lagos Port Complex, Tin Can-Island Port Complex, Calabar Port, Rivers Ports, Onne Ports Complex, and Delta Ports Complex—were also reorganized, and the former eight ports were reduced to six major ports—two (2) in Lagos and four (4) in the east.
The National Council on Privatization published an advertisement for expressions of interest on December 3rd, 2003, in accordance with the reform program, and the Bureau of Public Enterprise served as the transaction agent. Only 94 of the 110 EOIs that were collected were pre-qualified. Pre-bid meetings, data rooms, and physical due diligence were also completed, and bidders received requests for proposals. The financial proposals were also opened once the technical bids had been examined to determine the winning bidders.
A Public Sector Team made up of the Nigerian Ports Authority and the Bureau of Public Enterprise negotiated the concession agreements on behalf of all the successful bidders. Effective negotiations resulted in signed agreements.
A transition program was started in preparation for handover. In accordance with this new arrangement, the Authority transferred part of her duties to the private sector.
What Are The functions Of The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA)
- Ownership and management of land and water inside port boundaries.
- Ports infrastructure planning and development.
- Setting benchmarks for tariff structure and leasing and concessioning port infrastructure
- Responsible for conducting hydrographic surveys and nautical/harbour activities.
- Incidents and pollution in the ocean
- Upkeep of safety and security in the communal places used by users.
- Establishing port bye-laws and regulations, and monitoring and enforcing them
- Monitoring daily activities and applying the provisions of the applicable agreements.
- Ship maintenance, anchoring, bunkering, ship chandelling, and towing
Private Sector
- Cargo handling, stevedoring, warehousing and delivery.
- Acquisition of cargo handling and operations related equipment
- Development and maintenance of ports’ superstructure
- Maintenance of safety and security within the terminal
- Federal Ministry Of Transportation
- Policy formulation and planning at national level of basic marine infrastructure.
- Legislation
- International relations.
Nigeria Ports Authority Salary Structure
Employees of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) are paid a monthly salary that ranges from $100,000 to $600,000 on average in 2023, and their pay is determined by both their academic standing and grade level. Having stated that, the following are some of the monthly salaries earned by a chosen group of NPA employees:
- Counselors: ₦180,000 – ₦200,000 per month
- Desk Cadet Officers: ₦250,000 – ₦300,000 as salaries per month
- HSE Officers: ₦300,000 – ₦400,000 currently
- Control Engineers: ₦450,000 – ₦600,000
Note that the estimated salary scale are their monthly take home pay.