President, Muhammadu Buhari will this morning (Thursday) morning commission the 157 kilometres Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge rail project at the Ebute Metta Station now known as the Mobolaji Johnson Station.

He will then proceed to the Apapa port in the afternoon for the commissioning of the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure also known as the Deep Blue project of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

A final inspection of the Lagos-Ibadan rail project by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi on Wednesday revealed that the project is now ready for the occasion.

The minister had disclosed that apart from moving passengers along the ever-busy route, it is also aimed at ensuring the movement of cargoes from the seaport at Apapa using the train as a means to decongest the ports.

“You can actually take a train to the seaport, but that is not just the end, we want to make sure that we are in a position to move cargoes from the seaport straight to the train, instead of transporting them a little further to put them on the train,” he said during an earlier inspection.

The second event lined up for Thursday, which is about the Deep Blue Project, is an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Transportation in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Defence and it is being implemented by NIMASA, with participation from the Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Army, Nigerian Air Force, Nigeria Police, and Department of State Services.

The Deep Blue Project aims to prevent illegal activities in the Nigerian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), enforce maritime regulations, enhance the safety of lives at sea, and prevent illegal activities in the inland waterways.

In February, the Federal Government added the Secure Anchorage Area (SAA), off the coast of Lagos, to the areas under the protection of the Deep Blue Project.

(Nigerian Tribune)

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