The Sea Empowerment and Research Centre has expressed deep concern over the continued delay in securing presidential assent to the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Authority Bill, describing the development as a critical policy issue with far-reaching implications for Nigeria’s maritime competitiveness, trade facilitation and investment climate.
SEREC disclosed this in its latest policy bulletin titled ‘NPERA Bill: Nigeria cannot afford another regulatory vacuum in the port industry’, signed by its Head of Research, Eugene Nweke, obtained by The PUNCH.
The body warned that as the tenure of the 10th National Assembly gradually draws to a close, any failure to conclude the legislative process may result in the bill lapsing, thereby compelling a fresh legislative process in a subsequent assembly.
It added that such an outcome would not only delay a long-awaited reform but also prolong the institutional vacuum that has existed since the concessioning of Nigeria’s seaports in 2006.
According to SEREC, nearly two decades after the port concession programme, Nigeria has yet to establish a statutory and independent economic regulator, “dedicated exclusively to the oversight of port pricing, tariff administration, competition regulation, economic performance monitoring, and sector-specific dispute resolution.”
“This regulatory gap has continued to generate overlapping institutional responsibilities, inconsistent economic regulation, tariff controversies, investor uncertainty, and avoidable commercial disputes across the port value chain,” SEREC warned.
SEREC noted that an independent port economic regulatory authority would provide a transparent and predictable framework for regulating port tariffs and charges, ensuring that pricing decisions are guided by established economic principles rather than administrative discretion.
“The authority would also promote fair competition among terminal operators and service providers, discourage anti-competitive practices, strengthen investor confidence, and provide a credible mechanism for resolving commercial disputes before they escalate into prolonged litigation,” SEREC added.
The body maintained that beyond economic regulation, the bill is expected to support Nigeria’s broader aspirations under the Renewed Hope Agenda, the National Blue Economy strategy and the African Continental Free Trade Area by creating a more efficient, transparent and globally competitive port environment.
The group stated that the continued delay in enacting the bill could have several consequences, including prolonged absence of a dedicated economic regulator for Nigerian ports.
“Continued uncertainty in tariff setting and pricing mechanisms, increased regulatory overlaps and institutional conflicts, reduced investor confidence in long-term port infrastructure development, higher logistics costs, ultimately passed on to Nigerian businesses and consumers, increased commercial disputes and litigation due to weak sector-specific dispute resolution mechanisms, slower implementation of modern port governance reforms required for regional competitiveness, among others,” it stated.
SEREC argued that at a time when neighbouring maritime nations are strengthening regulatory institutions to attract cargo traffic and investment, Nigeria must avoid policy inertia that could undermine its strategic position as the maritime gateway to West and Central Africa.
“The enactment of the NPERA Bill should not be viewed merely as the creation of another government institution. Rather, it represents the completion of one of the most critical components of Nigeria’s port concession reforms. A credible economic regulator will provide the policy certainty required to encourage private investment, protect port users from arbitrary charges, improve operational efficiency, enhance transparency, and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s maritime governance architecture,” it stressed.
SEREC opined that the NPERA Bill deserves urgent national attention and should be accorded priority consideration before the expiration of the current legislative cycle: “Nigeria’s aspiration to become Africa’s preferred maritime and logistics hub cannot be achieved without a modern, transparent, independent, and professionally managed economic regulatory framework. The cost of delaying this reform is far greater than the administrative effort required to complete the legislative process.”
It stressed that the future competitiveness of Nigerian ports will depend not only on physical infrastructure but equally on the strength, credibility and predictability of the country’s economic regulatory framework.
The NPERA Bill was conceived to address these deficiencies and to align Nigeria’s port governance framework with international best practices. The NPERA Bill presents Nigeria with a historic opportunity to close a long-standing institutional gap, reinforce investor confidence, enhance port efficiency and safeguard the economic interests of all port users.
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