The 14th session of National Council on Transport (NCT) opened on Monday in Enugu, with the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transport, Alhaji Mohammed Bashar, calling for sustained, safe and secure transport sector.
Bashar, who is the Chairman of the Technical Session of the five-day event, said that the sector was crucial to the sustenance of the economy.
He said that the sector was accorded the highest priority by the current administration due to its importance in the development of the nation.
The permanent secretary added that having a functional transport system was one sure way of opening the country to more development opportunities.
He noted that having a functional and integrated modern transport system is one sure way of achieving the vision of placing Nigeria among one of the top 20 economies by the year 2020.
“We have gathered here to deliberate on the safety and security of the sector and how to improve interconnectivity of state capitals.’’
Bashar said government had taken unprecedented steps in funding the transport infrastructure in order to make the sector robust.
He said that the recommendations of the session would determine Nigeria’s policy direction in the sector for the next 12 months on the short term.
“The recommendations will hopefully have a bearing on the longer term as we strive to make the sector safe,” he said.
He said it was government’s desire to achieve a private sector driven economy that would be anchored on service delivery.
He, however, expressed regret that previous recommendations by the NCT had not been implemented.
“Our score card shows that decisions of the 13th NCT are yet to be implemented and this session needs to recommend how to implement those decisions,” he said.
In his address of welcome, the Permanent Secretary, Enugu State Ministry of Transport, Mrs Chika Nebo, said there was urgent need to make the sector safe for stakeholders.
She said “this is the right time for transport safety to be considered, considering the challenges so far witnessed in the sector.
“We need to take resolutions concerning issues of risks attached to issues of transportation in the country.
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