NIWA partners Parts Central to tackle waterways pollution, create jobs, boost blue economy

…Targets waste mangt, navigability, aquatic biodiversity

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has partnered with Parts Central Limited on a nationwide initiative to tackle pollution and indiscriminate waste disposal across Nigeria’s inland waterways, with the project also designed to create jobs and unlock new economic opportunities under the country’s emerging blue economy.

The initiative will be unveiled on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at BIC Garden, Lagos, where stakeholders across the maritime sector, government agencies, private businesses and waterfront communities are expected to deliberate on the programme and its implementation.

Waste on waterways

The project is designed to establish a structured approach to identifying sources of pollution, removing waste from waterways and converting recovered materials into economic value.

According to the organisers, the intervention is expected to go beyond routine environmental clean-up by creating employment opportunities for communities located along the waterways and encouraging greater community participation in environmental protection.

The programme will also target debris and pollution-related obstructions that impede navigation, with the expectation that cleaner waterways will improve navigability and make inland water transportation safer and more efficient.

Another major component is the protection of aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity. The organisers said the initiative could contribute to the conservation of aquatic species and habitats, some of which remain poorly documented, while supporting the development of Nigeria’s fisheries economy.

The partnership is coming against the backdrop of the federal government’s renewed push to develop the blue economy by expanding the economic value derived from Nigeria’s marine and inland water resources beyond transportation.

Oyebamiji, former NIWA Managing Director and Gboyega Oyetola, Minister of Maritime and Blue Economy

The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, has repeatedly stressed the need to harness the country’s vast aquatic resources as drivers of economic diversification, employment and sustainable development.

The clean-up initiative was conceived under the leadership of the immediate past Managing Director of NIWA, Asiwaju Bola Oyebamiji, who is now the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Osun State.

Olaoluwa Onifade and Engr. Sarat Braimah

NIWA and Parts Central said the project is intended to provide a sustainable framework for addressing waterways pollution while linking environmental restoration to economic activity.

NIWA Lagos Area Manager, Engr. Sarat Braimah, and Managing Director of Parts Central Limited, Henry Olaoluwa Onifade, said the Lagos unveiling would provide an opportunity to brief stakeholders on the objectives and potential benefits of the initiative and secure their support.

They stressed that collaboration among government institutions, private-sector operators, waterfront communities and other users of the waterways would be critical to the success of the programme.

The partners said the initiative would seek to establish waste-management practices capable of being sustained beyond a single clean-up exercise, while promoting recycling, responsible disposal and other opportunities for converting waste into economic value.

They added that cleaner waterways would not only support environmental sustainability but also strengthen economic activities dependent on inland waters, including transportation, fishing and other waterfront enterprises.

The initiative, according to its promoters, represents an attempt to place environmental protection at the centre of Nigeria’s blue economy ambitions by demonstrating that cleaner waterways can simultaneously improve navigation, protect aquatic resources, create jobs and generate economic value.

Stakeholders at the August 18 unveiling are expected to examine the implementation strategy, areas of collaboration and mechanisms for ensuring that the clean-up programme achieves sustained impact across Nigeria’s inland waterways.