Seriake Dickson, Bayelsa State Governor

The Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has assured Nigerians and prospective investors that the state deep seaport at Agge in Ekeremor will be ready before the end of his tenure in February 2020.

He disclosed that the government had already acquired and surveyed 15, 000 hectares of land for the construction of the seaport.

Dickson gave the assurance on Wednesday evening while inaugurating a 14-member Project Implementation Committee for the Development of the Agge Deep Seaport in Government House, Yenagoa.

The Governor in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Francis Agbo, reiterated his administration’s commitment to the take-off of the project.

Dickson, who expressed satisfaction with the surveying job done by the Nigerian Army Engineering Corps, however, said the government intended to further engage them to survey another 15, 000 hectares for the development of the Agge Port City.

He described the committee as a team of experts and mandated them to advise and monitor the technical developments arising from the project, and come up with a realistic time-frame of achievable milestones.

He said, “All I want to see before the end of my tenure on the 14th of February, 2020, is that, some commercial port-related activity should have started in that seaport.  That is why it has become necessary to put this team together.

“Already a lot of work has been done.  But going forward, it is the intention of the government to create a formal platform beyond this team either by way of a state corporation, which will be established by a bill that I intend to send to the State House of Assembly or we get the Agge Seaport Development Company registered as a corporate entity that will run the actual management of the assets of that company.”

The Governor expressed optimism that the Federal Government would fulfil its promise of granting all necessary licenses for the project. He assured the investing public of the security of their lives and investment in the area.