In a bid to ensure the viability of Dala Dry Port in Kano State, the first set of 17 locomotive-driven containers, on Wednesday, arrived Lagos from Kano State.
The containers, which were loaded in Dala Inland Port, took off on July 7, 2024, and arrived Lagos on July 17 after operating only on day-time for 10 days.
The cargo train, which arrived Lagos at about noon on Wednesday, July 17, was received by federal government officials, including the managing director of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), Engr. Fidet Okhiria.
Recall that the federal government had in June, 2024, flagged off the freight operations for Kano to Lagos route for the effective use of the Dala Inland Port in Kano and ease movement of containers from Apapa Port in Lagos to Kano via rail.
The Nigerian government believed the cargo haulage system will ease movement of goods from the ports to the hinterlands, while reducing not only the number of articulated vehicles on the Nigerian roads, but averting possible mishaps.
During the flag-off, the governor of Kano State, Abba Kabiru Yusuf, who was represented by his deputy, Abdulsalam Gwarzo, had said that the project has provided needed opportunities for direct importation of goods from abroad to Kano State without hindrance.
Governor Yusuf noted that the project will soon boost the economy of the state to continue playing its leadership role in commercial activities across the Sahara.
“This project I so much believe, is key to us. Days are gone when people go to Lagos to claim their goods, Port Harcourt or Calabar. It has come when the government of Kano State, is about to join Lagos State in enacting policy on transportation to enable us to diversify the economic potentials of the state by tapping the enormous benefits in the sector,” the governor had said.
