The Ogun State Government and DP World MEA FZE have signed Memoranda of Understanding for the development of the Gateway Deep Sea Port and the Ogun State Blue Marine Special Economic Zone, projects expected to draw more than $7 billion in initial investment and generate over 50,000 direct jobs.

President Bola Tinubu witnessed the signing ceremony in Paris, France, alongside the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, and the Director-General of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho.

The agreements bring together the Federal Government, the Ogun State Government, DP World, financial advisers and other private-sector partners under a major investment framework designed to ease trade bottlenecks, strengthen logistics and expand Nigeria’s manufacturing and export capacity.

Tinubu said the two projects would tackle longstanding infrastructure and logistics challenges while creating an integrated platform for industrial production, maritime commerce and access to African and global markets.

“We are doing more than signing agreements; we are laying the foundation for a new chapter in Nigeria’s development,” the president said.

The Gateway Deep Sea Port, planned for Ogun Waterside, will feature a four-kilometre berth and an 18-metre draft, enabling it to accommodate larger vessels, decongest the Lagos port corridor and cut costs and delays for importers and exporters.

The port will be integrated with the proposed 10,000-hectare Blue Marine Special Economic Zone, which is expected to support manufacturing, processing and export-oriented industries.

Tinubu explained that the zone would allow imported inputs to be converted into finished products and Nigerian raw materials to be processed for export, thereby boosting the country’s non-oil export base.

“A port moves cargo; a port integrated with a special economic zone helps to build an economy,” he said.

The President noted that the 28km Ogun section of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway would serve as a vital link between the port and industrial zone, Lagos, the Nigerian hinterland and wider African markets.

He added that the emerging corridor would also connect with other strategic investments, including the proposed Nigerian Navy Operating Base and Dockyard and the OK LNG Project, deepening the relationship between maritime infrastructure, industry, energy and trade.

Tinubu said the projects represented an initial investment of more than $7 billion and were projected to create over 50,000 direct jobs, in addition to further indirect employment opportunities.

He described the investment as a practical demonstration of economic diversification and industrialisation under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

The president commended the Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, for securing the land, structuring the investment framework and reducing risks for investors.

He described the development as an example of cooperative federalism, with a sub-national initiative receiving federal backing.

Tinubu assured investors of regulatory clarity and policy stability, pledging federal support for road, rail and power connectivity, investment security and the maritime domain.

He said the Federal Government would hold all parties accountable to their commitments, stressing that the agreements must translate into investments, projects, jobs and economic opportunities.

Earlier, Governor Abiodun described the signing as a defining moment in the economic history of Ogun State and Nigeria’s engagement with the global economy.

Abiodun credited President Tinubu with providing the political leadership that revived the long-standing deep seaport vision for the Ogun coastline, noting that the project had remained largely unrealised for more than three decades.

“It has taken the foresight, courage and dogged leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to move it from aspiration to reality,” the governor said.

He commended Oyetola, the NPA and other federal institutions for their support, saying the project reflected the alignment between the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda and Ogun’s Building Our Future Together agenda.