The Federal Government aims to boost revenue from the blue economy, targeting an annual revenue of N2 trillion by 2027. Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola, announced this during a ministerial press briefing on Tuesday as part of President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s sectoral update.
Oyetola emphasized that increasing the marine and blue economy’s contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is crucial for the Ministry’s revenue goals. He stated, “A key measure of success for the Ministry is to increase the contribution of the marine and blue economy to national Gross Domestic Products. We are implementing a 3-pronged strategy expected to double current revenue generation to achieve N2 trillion per annum by 2027.”
Strategic Plan
The Minister outlined a comprehensive strategy to meet this target, focusing on three main areas: addressing revenue leakages, enhancing existing revenue sources, and identifying new blue economy revenue streams.
Addressing Revenue Leakages:
- Automating revenue collection to eliminate bottlenecks.
- Enhancing transparency.
- Deploying revenue assurance technologies for accurate billing.
Enhancing Existing Revenue Sources:
- Commissioning revenue enhancement studies.
- Efficiently utilizing assets through private-sector concessions and public-private partnerships.
Identifying New Revenue Streams:
- Promoting investment campaigns targeting domestic and international marine and blue economy investors.
Aligning with National Goals
This initiative aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s broader economic goals to transform Nigeria into a $1 trillion economy by 2026 and a $4 trillion economy by 2035.
Recent Revenue Growth
The Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy’s agencies, including the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), and National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), have already reported significant revenue increases in the first quarter of 2024.
According to the Ministry’s First Year Sector Report, these agencies saw a cumulative revenue increase of 92% in Q1 2024 compared to Q1 2023.
- NPA: Revenue rose by 105.67%, from N82.9 billion in Q1 2023 to N170.5 billion in Q1 2024.
- NIMASA: Revenue grew from N37.4 billion in Q1 2023 to N62.2 billion in Q1 2024.
- NSC: Revenue increased from N4.9 billion in Q1 2023 to N8.7 billion in Q1 2024.
- NIWA: Revenue rose from N1.1 billion in Q1 2023 to N1.4 billion in Q1 2024.
Combined, these agencies generated N242.8 billion in Q1 2024, up from N126.4 billion in Q1 2023.
