Lagos considers more patronage of local boat builders
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patronage from the Lagos State Government, the Managing Director of the Lagos
State Ferry Services (LAGFERRY), Mr. Abdoulbaq Ladi-Balogun, has assured.
Stating this during an inspection
tour on Monday of two major boat building factories; V-Craft and Sierra Craft,
Ladi-Balogun said the proposed action with interest in water transportation,
would ensure possibilities of decongesting the roads, in line with making water
transportation a preferred alternative to road travel.
commitment to efficient water transportation system, saying LAGFERRY has been
mandated to identify and patronise local builders who have the capacity to
build and adhere strictly to international standard practises.
ensure everybody is carried along in achieving the multi-modal transportation
initiative of the present administration to decongest the roads, so any
manufacturer that meets our criteria will be patronised.
“We want to encourage
local investors, particularly those that have interest in water transportation
to patronise the manufacturers of these boats,” he stated.
of weeks, Ladi-Balogun assured Lagosians of a new experience in water
transportation driven by the latest technology and built on safety, reliability,
efficient services, comfort and value for money.
Sierra Craft, Mr. Olusegun Jaji, expressed delight at the state government’s interest in developing local water transportation, especially with assurances that local boat builders would enjoy government patronage, a gesture he sees as a laudable and strategic to improving and increasing the use of water transportation.
required by the State government, and added that industry players were also ready to
key into the vision of the present administration to improve water
transportation, in order to help decongest the heavy traffic situation in the
city.