Nigeria: 2014 in Focus - Cargo Congestion At Lagos Airport, a Challenge to Stakeholders

2 January 2015

THE monumental problem created by the two-week closure of the cargo terminal of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, in November, by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), is yet to abate, more than one month the terminal reopened for business. The teething dilema now is how to quickly resolve the challenge occasioned by the surplus uncleared cargo before the closure, the ones that came during the closure and the quantum of goods that cargo operators have been bringing in since the terminal reopened, which have caused unmanageable congestion at the terminal, spilling over to loading ramp and even air side, a situation that is yielding to serious concern because of its safety and security implications.

Several indicators point to the problem at hand. One of such indicators is that the cargo terminal is no longer an all comers affair. It is now restricted to only licenced and verified Customs agents and freight forwarders who have business to conduct there. This means that access to the warehouses is no longer open to unauthorised persons as it was in the past. The crowds that milled around the gates and warehouses of the terminal who constituted themselves and operated as untouchables, have been cleared by security operatives.

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