President Bola Tinubu has described the groundbreaking of the Bakassi Deep Seaport in Cross River State as a major milestone in Nigeria’s economic diversification, saying the project will open new commercial corridors, stimulate industrialisation and create jobs.
Represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the ceremony in Bakassi on Friday, November 13, 2026, Tinubu commended Governor Bassey Otu and the people of Cross River for sustaining the project’s vision and moving it towards actualisation.
The President recalled that the project was conceived in 2014, with an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment developed in March 2015, before receiving fresh impetus under Otu.
Designed with a 20-metre draft, the port is expected to accommodate large vessels that currently bypass Nigerian ports. It is also linked to a 260-kilometre superhighway intended to facilitate the movement of cargo to markets across the country.
Tinubu credited Otu’s determination with helping to overcome institutional and financial challenges, including efforts to secure a $3.5 billion financing arrangement with Afreximbank and formalise the Public-Private Partnership framework in February 2025.
“This is beyond a Cross River dream. It is a Nigerian project. It is a poverty breaker,” he said.
Tinubu stressed that the Bakassi port would complement, rather than compete with, Lagos, which handles more than 80 per cent of Nigeria’s foreign trade.
“Lagos is not our enemy. Lagos is our elder brother in trade. No country eats with one hand. No country carries all its loads on one shoulder. That shoulder will break,” he said.
He argued that establishing another major maritime gateway would reduce pressure on Lagos ports, ease congestion and lower costs.
“When Calabar works, Nigeria works on two legs,” the President added.
He said Nigeria had not fully exploited its coastline along the Gulf of Guinea, while neighbouring countries continued to benefit from trade that could be attracted to Nigerian ports.
Tinubu said the Bakassi project would help retain regional cargo, expand access to international markets and strengthen Nigeria’s competitiveness in maritime trade.
He noted that about 90 per cent of cargo moves by sea, but Nigeria handles only a fraction of regional cargo trade despite its economic position in West Africa. The port, he said, would help close the gap, reduce dependence on a single maritime gateway and enable the country to capture a larger share of regional commerce.
The President also acknowledged the territorial and economic losses suffered by Cross River following the Bakassi Peninsula ruling and the loss of oil revenue.
He, however, said the setbacks had not diminished the people’s courage, hospitality and resilience.
“The peninsula was not the end of your story, but the beginning of your next chapter,” he said, urging residents to protect the project from political interference and see it as an inheritance for future generations.
In his remarks, Governor Otu said the groundbreaking followed years of political, administrative, legal and environmental challenges that had stalled the project.
He credited Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda with providing the federal support needed to revive the project, saying the administration’s plans to expand and upgrade maritime corridors created a fresh opportunity for Cross River.
Otu commended the President for guiding the state through the processes leading to the Certificate of Compliance and final federal approval, describing him as “a bastion of economic diversification and social equity”.
Recalling Calabar’s maritime heritage, the governor said the new facility would reinforce Cross River’s status as a littoral state and demonstrate the benefits of cooperation between the federal and state governments.
He said the state had completed preparatory work, including an Environmental Impact Assessment and hydrographic, geotechnical and geophysical surveys, and secured the necessary federal approvals.
The project will be delivered through a Public-Private Partnership arrangement, with an initial funding approval of $2.27 billion.
Otu said the port would create opportunities in logistics, trade, fishing, shipping, tourism and shipbuilding, positioning Cross River as a maritime hub along the Gulf of Guinea.
He added that the surveys exposed flaws in the 1903 navigational charts, which the Federal Government replaced on October 1, 2026, affirming the state’s littoral status.
The governor also disclosed that selected indigenes of Cross River were undergoing specialised training for construction and operational roles, with plans for knowledge transfer.
He identified the state’s three-way economic corridor, comprising the airport, seaport and Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, as a key link for cargo movement and investment.
Otu invited investors in maritime and related industries to explore the opportunities offered by the project, citing the state’s one-stop investment hub and tax incentives. He also called on development partners to support efforts to build a resilient economy.
In his goodwill message, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, commended Tinubu’s efforts to develop Nigeria’s maritime sector.
He cited the establishment of the Ministry in 2023 and the approval of the country’s first National Policy on Marine and Blue Economy as steps taken to unlock the sector’s potential.
Oyetola disclosed that revenue generated by agencies under the Ministry increased from ₦700.79 billion in 2023 to ₦1.83 trillion in 2025, attributing the growth to improved revenue assurance and the closure of leakages.
He also listed the elimination of piracy in Nigerian waters, approval for the modernisation of the six legacy seaports and improved port governance through the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Act among the administration’s achievements.
The minister further cited Nigeria’s election to the decision-making Council of the International Maritime Organization after almost two decades, the lifting of United States Coast Guard restrictions on Nigerian-bound vessels in August 2026, and the release of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund to shipowners.
He said fish production had also increased from 1.1 million to 1.4 million tonnes.
Oyetola said the Bakassi port would improve market access and create industrial, investment and employment opportunities. Its connection to the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, he added, would strengthen its commercial viability and extend the benefits across Cross River, the South-South and the wider Nigerian economy.
He pledged the Ministry’s support for the development of a modern, efficient and environmentally sustainable port, describing the project as an important step towards converting Nigeria’s maritime advantages into sustainable economic growth.
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