The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) said it would remove five wrecks obstructing navigation along the Lagos backwaters as part of efforts to tackle boat mishaps.

This is even as the agency said it would license 2,200 boats and train 1,500 skippers before the end of 2024.

Speaking with newsmen at the weekend in Lagos, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NIWA, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, explained that Lagos, being the hub of inland waterways activities in Nigeria, has already seen the deployment of five patrol boats to monitor activities on the state's waterways.

"Nigeria has about 10,000 kilometres of waterways, but anytime you search via Google, you will always find out that only 3,000 kilometres are navigable. I have given the area managers a target of increasing navigable waterways in Nigeria from 3,000 kilometres to 5,000 kilometres.

"This means that NIWA has to dredge an additional 2,000 kilometres of waterways to meet the target of 5,000 kilometres of navigable inland waterways.

On the maintenance of physical presence on the Lagos waterways, Mr Oyebamiji revealed that five patrol boats have already been deployed across Lagos State.

"With the Supreme Court judgment, we cannot afford to have any lapses any longer," he said.