The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, on Thursday disclosed that only 4,000km of Nigeria’s 10,000km waterways is navigable.
Mustapha made the disclosure at the Nigeria – Ukraine Trade and Investment Roundtable held in Abuja.
He solicited for partnership with Ukraine to enable the Federal Government to further develop its waterways.
According to him, such a step would reduce the pressure on the nation’s roads.
“Nigeria has 10,000km waterways and 4,000km is navigable. I believe that if our waterways are fully developed, it can take away pressure from our roads as a bulk of our cargoes can be transported through the waterways,” Mustapha said.
On her part, the Deputy Minister for Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, Natalia Mykolska, described Nigeria as a long-standing friend of Ukraine.
She noted that Nigerian students in Ukraine were the best ambassadors for both countries.
“Nigeria is a strategic partner, we believe trade is not a one-way street; we need to think of import, export and joint cooperation,” Mykolska said.