Nigeria loses trillions to underutilisation of maritime potential – SEREC

Nigeria’s maritime sector is currently operating below its economic potential, losing an annual revenue of ₦1.2 to ₦1.8 trillion and logistics inefficiency cost to trade is 20% – 30% of cargo value.

While port-related delays cost $7 – $10 billion annually, untapped inland waterway value (barge economy): ₦500 billion – ₦1 trillion yearly potential.

The Sea Empowerment and Research Centre (SEREC) came up with these revenue losses in a review paper, titled “Nigeria’s Maritime Crossroads: Quantifying the Cost of Policy Gaps and Unlocking a ₦3–₦5 Trillion Blue Economy Opportunity”

The paper was signed by the Head of Research, SEREC, Fwdr. Eugene Nweke, Rff.

According to SEREC, these figures underscore a fundamental reality that Nigeria is not just underperforming, it is incurring avoidable economic losses at scale.

Revisiting the structural failure, the Centre reflected on the position of former President Goodluck Jonathan who described the collapse of the Nigerian National Shipping Line as a historical misstep, leading to huge financial losses.

“The reflections by former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan on the collapse of the Nigerian National Shipping Line highlight a historical misstep that, in today’s value terms, can be conservatively estimated as:
Fleet investment losses (historic value adjusted): $500 million – $1 billion.
Opportunity cost of lost national carrier capacity (over 30 years): $10 – $15 billion.

“This reinforces a recurring pattern of non-data-driven investment decisions,” said the Centre, noting that recent industry discussions failed to address the financial implications of these economic missteps.

The SEREC pointed out that the barging sector, which is capable of generating ₦1 trillion for the nation, is neglected and underutilized despite its strategic importance.

It added that if the sector is fully optimised, it will reduce port congestion by 30%–40%, cut cargo evacuation cost by 20%–35% and save Nigerian roads over ₦200 billion annually in maintenance costs.

“Barging represents Nigeria’s fastest, cheapest, and most scalable logistics solution—yet remains policy-neglected,” said the Centre.

On the Blue Economy Policy, it positioned that the creation of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy signals intent, but intent must translate into measurable economic output.

According to the paper, if effectively implemented, Nigeria’s blue economy can generate ₦3 – ₦5 trillion annually within 5–7 years, 2–3 million direct and indirect jobs and 15%–20% contribution to non-oil GDP.

To overcome all these challenges, SEREC recommended the establishment a Maritime Economic Intelligence Framework, Annual Maritime GDP contribution tracking, real-time monitoring of trade cost indicators, launch a ₦500 Billion National Barge Development Fund, deploy the National Marine & Blue Economy Policy as a Rolling Investment Plan, full Automation of Port Operations, establishment of a National Maritime Coordination Council and align all agencies under a unified execution framework.

On the cost of inaction, the Centre concluded that Nigeria is currently paying a multi-trillion-naira annual penalty for inefficiencies, policy gaps, and delayed reforms.

The choice before policymakers is clear: Continue with fragmented, non-quantified approaches it transition to a data-driven, investment-aligned, and execution-focused maritime economy

“The future of Nigeria’s maritime sector must be measured in numbers, not narratives,” SEREC asserted