WHAT IS HOLDING THE DREDGING OF OGUTA/ORASHI RIVERS? WE WANT TO SEE THE DREDGERS ARRIVE
E-ISSN: 2354-4481
By John Mbonu Uchenwoke-Ekperechi
In a democracy, government does not merely exercise power; it holds public trust. Every major public project therefore deserves transparency, accountability and continuous communication with the people whose economic future it is designed to transform.
This is particularly important when the project in question has the potential to redefine the economic geography of an entire region.
The proposed dredging of the Oguta Lake–Orashi River–Degema corridor to the Atlantic Ocean is one such project.
The people of Oguta, Imo State and the Southeast deserve to know: What is holding it back? What stage is it presently at? What remains to be done, and when will the dredging proper commence?
Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodimma, the Executive Governor of Imo State deserves commendation for aggressively pursuing this strategic maritime project.
The late President Muhammadu Buhari administration approved the project following the Governor's proposal in 2022. The project was subsequently formally flagged off on May 11, 2023, with former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo representing President Buhari at Oguta. The official remarks described the initiative as a potentially transformative economic project for Imo, Nigeria and the West African sub-region.
Another significant milestone followed on September 25, 2023, when the Nigerian Navy presented the completed hydrographic and comprehensive bathymetric/investigative survey report to Governor Uzodimma. The Governor acknowledged that the survey phase had been completed and stated that the next stage would involve an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and other necessary arrangements leading to the actual dredging.
He also thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the current Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Awal Zubairu Gambo for supporting the project.
If the hydrographic survey has been completed, what exactly is delaying the transition from survey to implementation? Is it the EIA? Financing? Procurement? Engineering design? Intergovernmental coordination?
Environmental approvals? Private-sector participation? Or the absence of a clearly defined implementation timetable? This is public accountability, transparency and communication are mostly important in governance and making the people to understanding project progression and challenges.
These questions should not be interpreted as hostility towards government. Rather, they are legitimate questions in a democracy.
The economic argument for the project is compelling. A navigable Oguta–Orashi corridor could integrate inland water transportation with coastal and maritime logistics, reducing dependence on road transportation for appropriate categories of bulk cargo. It could stimulate jetties, terminals, warehouses, boatyards, logistics companies, haulage interfaces, marine services and water-based commerce.
It could also create a new investment ecosystem around Oguta and adjoining communities. With appropriate planning, inland dry-port facilities, cargo consolidation centres, storage terminals, industrial estates and maritime support services could emerge. The wider Imo economy could benefit from improved access to regional and international markets.
The employment implications are equally significant. Dredging itself requires engineers, surveyors, hydrographers, equipment operators, environmental specialists and marine workers. Once operational, the corridor could support jobs in vessel operations, cargo handling, logistics, warehousing, security, hospitality, maintenance, boat construction and ancillary services.
Governor Uzodimma himself has described the project as capable of becoming an economic hub for Imo, the Southeast and Nigeria, while identifying opportunities around gas optimisation, petrochemicals and fertiliser production. The Nigerian Navy's recommendations also envisaged further dredging/canalisation toward Bonny River via Onne for larger vessels, alongside navigation aids such as standard buoys.
Importantly, this is not simply an Oguta project. It is potentially a Southeast maritime-access project.
The Southeast may be geographically landlocked from the Atlantic coastline, but waterways can provide strategic connectivity to coastal maritime networks. A functional Oguta–Orashi route could therefore become a logistics artery linking the productive economy of the Southeast with the wider Niger Delta maritime environment.
There is also evidence that the Orashi corridor remains within government planning: in 2025, the National Inland Waterways Authority advertised for hydrographic survey and side-scanning of a 90-kilometre section of the Orashi River from Oguta to Ebocha.
Therefore, the question before the authorities is not whether the idea is economically worthwhile. It is whether Nigeria and Imo State will now move decisively from survey, promises and planning to implementation.
The people deserve a public project tracker: the status of the EIA, financing structure, procurement process, engineering scope, environmental safeguards, public-private partnership arrangements, projected dredging depth, navigation standards, maintenance plan and implementation timeline.
Oguta should not merely hear that it has an economic future. Oguta should be shown the roadmap to that future.
The Oguta Lake–Orashi–Atlantic corridor could become a maritime gateway, an employment corridor and a major economic hub. But transformational infrastructure does not become reality through political speeches alone. It requires transparent planning, accountable execution, sustainable financing and measurable deadlines.
What, therefore, is holding the dredging of Oguta/Orashi Rivers?
The people deserve an answer.
And more importantly, they deserve to see the dredgers arrive.
By John Mbonu Uchenwoke-Ekperechi
Publisher & Chief-Editor-in-Chief, Inside Agwa News
Columnist, Shadow of the Flag
