![Lagos Port Complex (port of Lagos) is located at the Apapa area of Lagos on March 16, 2016 in Lagos, Nigeria, West Africa.
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The Igbo Community Association in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has called on the federal government to approve the establishment of a seaport in Nigeria’s southeast.
It warns that continued over-reliance on Lagos ports worsens congestion and undermines national economic growth.
The association argued in a statement signed by its President General, Engr. Ikenna Ellis-Ezenekwe, that a southeastern seaport would alleviate the severe gridlock in Lagos, particularly in the Apapa area, where population density has soared to 8,172 people per square kilometre—far above the national average of 261.
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![President Bola Tinubu and former President Muhammadu Buhari [Channels TV]](https://image.api.sportal365.com/process/smp-images-production/pulse.ng/27072024/809347d6-7c84-4777-9dd7-480cae9c8ff0?operations=autocrop(340:210))
"The tenets of democracy support an equitable spread of infrastructural development across the regions of Nigeria," Ellis-Ezenekwe said.
"This over-focus on the seaports in Lagos has become counterproductive and a tad nepotistic."
Imminent impact of southeast seaport
According to the group, the southeast remains a major hub for international trade but relies heavily on Lagos ports, leading to inflated business costs and logistical delays.
They argue that redistributing maritime infrastructure would make "good business sense" and spur balanced economic development.
READ ALSO: Lagos deep seaport project to generate $53 billion and create 250,000 jobs
The ICA FCT urged the Tinubu administration to begin consultations with industry experts to initiate concrete planning for a southeastern seaport, while also upgrading existing ports in the Niger Delta.
Call for support
The group appealed to southeast-based unions and organisations to support the cause, framing it as both an economic and moral imperative.
“It is not only morally right, it's good business practice for the country,” Ellis-Ezenekwe said.
He added that such a development could also ease ethnic tensions, noting: “Housing a seaport in the southeast will definitely wither down the urge for agitation to a significant minimum.”