The Federal Government has unveiled Nigeria’s first National Land Transport Policy as part of efforts to build an integrated transportation system capable of driving economic growth and improving the movement of people and goods across the country.
The policy seeks to create a transport network that is faster, safer, more efficient, affordable, sustainable and interconnected, with road, rail, maritime and aviation infrastructure working together rather than operating as isolated systems.
Unveiling the policy in Abuja on Thursday, Vice-President Kashim Shettima said transportation remained critical to the nation’s economy because it connects workers, businesses, markets and communities.
Represented at the 19th National Council on Transportation by the Director-General of General Duties, Aliyu Modibbo Umar, the Vice-President said the Federal Government was committed to developing infrastructure that would support a more productive and competitive Nigerian economy.
He said the administration was moving away from isolated transportation projects towards an integrated national network capable of connecting production centres to markets, ports and consumers.
According to him, roads, railways, ports, inland waterways and aviation must complement one another to reduce transportation bottlenecks and facilitate the movement of goods and services.
Shettima highlighted the ongoing railway modernisation programme as a major component of the Federal Government’s transport strategy.
He cited the Kano-Maradi Railway Project, which passes through Jigawa and Katsina before connecting Nigeria with Maradi in Niger Republic, as an example of infrastructure designed to strengthen domestic connectivity, cross-border trade and regional integration.
The Vice-President also stressed the need to establish effective links between seaports, rail lines, roads and logistics hubs to improve cargo evacuation and reduce pressure on the nation’s highways.
“Rail must connect to roads. Rail to production centres and markets, while roads provide first- and last-mile access,” he said.
He noted that no single mode of transportation could adequately meet Nigeria’s growing needs in isolation.
The Federal Government also identified efficient urban transportation as a priority, particularly as major Nigerian cities continue to contend with congestion and inefficient public transport systems.
Shettima said the government had approved high-grade urban transportation projects and directed the Minister of Transportation to work with participating states to establish the necessary technical, institutional, regulatory and implementation frameworks.
He said successful implementation of the projects could provide a model for similar initiatives in other cities.
A former Minister of Transportation, Senator Said Ahmed Alkali, described the National Land Transport Policy as a historic development, noting that it represents Nigeria’s first comprehensive policy of its kind since independence.
Alkali said the absence of a comprehensive land transport framework had previously made it difficult for the Federal Ministry of Transportation to effectively regulate an increasingly complex sector.
He said the new policy would provide a framework for a fast, safe, efficient, affordable, convenient, integrated and intermodal transportation system.
The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Olufunso Adebiyi, said integration meant ensuring that Nigeria’s different modes of transportation were developed to function as components of one national system.
He said an efficient transport network was essential to improving national connectivity, supporting businesses and raising the quality of life of Nigerians.
The Federal Government is expected to use the new policy as a framework for coordinating future investments and reforms across the transport sector, with the broader objective of lowering logistics costs, improving connectivity and strengthening economic activity.
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