It is often said that a journey of one thousand miles, begins with a step and for the Edo State government under the able leadership of Godwin Obaseki, the work to make the dream of having a seaport in Gelegele ready, will become a reality in no distant time.
Gelegele River, located at Ovia South West Local Government Area of the state, over the years, has become a recurring decimal and a catch phrase for various politicians who want to win election in the state.
The huge economic values from the river if eventually becomes a seaport is enormous to the state, host community and the nation at large.
It will boost the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the state in no small measure and create jobs opportunities for the inhabitants of the community.
Based on this foresight, the state governor, Godwin Obaseki has begun a process of turning what some people said was a pipe dream into a reality following the steps taken thus far.
According to the state government, it said that the Benin Port Project, a 300,000 TEUs per annum facility, is well on track noting that the call for expression of request was advertised in February, 2023.
The government went further to say that by July, 2023, after a thorough bidding process, Mota Engil, a renowned global infrastructure development firm, emerged as the preferred bidder for the project.
It averred that Mota Engil is currently sourcing financing in the international market to commence construction.
The Edo State government boasted that Mota Engil had important critical heavy duty equipment mid last year to facilitate execution of high impact projects in the country.
The government assured the people of the state that the project is expected to be delivered through a Design, Build, Finance, Operate, Maintain and Transfer (DBFOMT) model.
It further emphasized that the project is being developed through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) involving the Ministry of Transport, Nigeria Port Authority, Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), among others.
With all these measures being put in place, what seems to be a mirage is becoming a reality.