Each time I drive across Lagos Third Mainland Bridge, which stretches over 11.8 kilometres of water that should be alive with movement, I am reminded that Africa’s greatest opportunities often lie in plain sight. They are hidden not by scarcity but by underutilization. Beneath me lies a vast aquatic corridor that connects Lagos Mainland to Lagos Island. Yet, the water is often still with only a few canoes drifting across the surface. In a city of more than 20 million people surrounded by lagoons and the Atlantic Ocean, the absence of a bustling vibrant water transport and maritime commerce is a metaphor for a continental paradox. Africa is rich in water but poor in water based economic activity.
This is the moment to change that.
What Lagos reveals is not an isolated oversight but a continental pattern. Africa’s waters hold extraordinary potential that remains largely dormant.
Africa’s blue economy which includes oceans, seas, rivers, lakes and wetlands is one of the continent’s most underused engines of prosperity. With more than 30,000 kilometres of coastline and 38 coastal states, Africa’s waters could anchor a new era of trade resilience and cultural exchange. Yet the sector remains largely dormant because of governance gaps, limited investment and fragmented regional strategies.
The scale of the opportunity
The African Union estimates that the continent’s marine territories cover more than 30 million square kilometres. This is a resource base that could rival the economic weight of mining or oil if it is properly harnessed. Fisheries alone support more than 12 million Africans. Aquaculture, which is led by countries like South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana is expanding quickly to meet rising demand for affordable protein.
Beyond food systems, Africa’s waters hold immense potential for shipping and logistics, offshore renewable energy, coastal and marine tourism and inland waterway transport.
If the African Continental Free Trade Area is to move from aspiration to lived reality, then Africa must shift a significant share of its trade from congested roads and inefficient railways to efficient waterways. The question is not whether Africa has the resources. The question is whether we will finally mobilise them.
But this potential is not abstract. It is anchored in real waterways that, if revitalised, could become the backbone of Africa’s economic integration.
Waterways that could transform intra-African trade
Across the continent, strategic waterways could become arteries of commerce and regional integration. They offer natural corridors that can move goods at lower cost and with greater reliability than many of our current land based routes. Below are five examples among others.
Niger and Benue Rivers
These rivers form a natural corridor that links Cameroun, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote D’Ivoire, Mali, Niger and Nigeria. Revitalising river ports and dredging key stretches could unlock low cost transport for agricultural goods, minerals and manufactured products. This would ease pressure on road networks and strengthen sub regional value chains.
Lake Victoria
This is East Africa’s largest freshwater system and it is shared by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Modern ferries, harmonised safety standards and lake based logistics hubs could accelerate regional trade within the East African Community. Lake Victoria could become a central connector for goods, people and services across the sub region.
Congo River
This is one of the deepest and most powerful rivers in the world located in Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo. Its vast basin also covers parts of the Central African Republic, Burundi and Rwanda. With proper dredging and port upgrades it could become the backbone of Central African trade. It has the potential to connect remote communities to regional markets and support the movement of bulk goods at scale.
Mozambique Channel
This is a strategic shipping lane with the potential to support a regional maritime cluster that links Mozambique, Madagascar, Tanzania and the Comoros. Investments in ports, shipyards and coastal tourism could position the sub region as a competitive logistics and tourism hub.
Senegal and Mauritania Atlantic Corridor
This corridor is emerging as a zone for energy, fisheries and shipping. Coordinated governance could unlock shared prosperity and strengthen West Africa’s maritime competitiveness.
These waterways could dramatically lower logistics costs and accelerate the vision of seamless intra African trade. They could also support the movement of goods that are essential for regional industrialisation.
To understand how these continental opportunities can translate into real economic gains, Nigeria offers a timely and instructive example.
Nigeria’s cabotage upgrade: Strategic turning point
After years of slow progress, Nigeria has strengthened enforcement of its Coastal and Inland Shipping Act, tightened waiver regimes and improved vessel registration and monitoring systems. These reforms have improved Nigeria’s standing in global maritime assessments and earned recognition for stronger cabotage governance.
This upgrade matters for three reasons:
- It signals restored credibility in Nigeria’s maritime governance.
- It strengthens domestic shipping capacity and reduces dependence on foreign vessels.
- It positions Nigeria as a more competitive maritime hub for West and Central Africa
For a country with vast coastal and inland waterways, this shift is not symbolic. It is strategic. It means more freight earnings retained within the country, more maritime jobs for Nigerians and a stronger foundation for coastal shipping routes that can feed into African Continental Free Trade Area value chains.
These cabotage gains are part of a wider transformation underway in Nigeria’s maritime sector.
Security and modernisation: The deep blue effect
Nigeria’s cabotage upgrade sits alongside broader maritime reforms that are reshaping the country’s maritime landscape in three very important ways.
First, the Deep Blue Project has improved maritime domain awareness and reduced piracy incidents in the Gulf of Guinea. Second, port digitisation and the National Single Window are improving clearance times and reducing bottlenecks. Third, the Lekki Deep Sea Port is emerging as a regional logistics hub that can handle some of the largest vessels on the continent.
Together these reforms show what becomes possible when governance, security and investment finally converge. They also demonstrate how a single country’s progress can have ripple effects across an entire region.
Nigeria’s experience offers a powerful lesson for the rest of the continent.
A continental lesson
Nigeria’s progress is not only a national achievement. It is a continental signal. Africa cannot build a thriving blue economy if foreign vessels dominate domestic shipping or if ports remain inefficient. Strengthening cabotage regimes, securing waterways and modernising maritime systems are essential for lowering logistics costs, building regional value chains, expanding intra African trade and retaining maritime wealth within the continent.
The next decade must be Africa’s maritime decade. It must be defined by coordinated investments, harmonised regulations and a shared commitment to unlocking the full value of our waters. This is partly how Africa will build resilient economies that are less dependent on external shocks and more anchored in regional strength.
Ultimately, the story is bigger than any single country.
Conclusion
Driving across the Third Mainland Bridge, I often imagine what Lagos as a city could become if its waters were alive with ferries, barges, floating markets and maritime innovation hubs. But this vision is not only about Lagos. It is about a continental awakening. Africa’s waters can power prosperity, resilience and cultural exchange if we choose to govern them well. The waters are waiting. The question is whether we will step into them with vision, coordination and the courage to build a truly interconnected Africa.
Dr. Wale Osofisan, PhD, is a seasoned governance strategist and policy analyst with over 23 years of experience advancing African-led, evidence-based solutions to political transitions, humanitarian crises and development challenges.
