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The South West Development Commission has obtained a provisional rail operating and track access licence from the Nigerian Railway Corporation, clearing the path for the commission to run passenger and freight services on existing rail corridors across the region. The approval marks a decisive shift toward stronger regional integration and economic transformation.
The licence authorises operations on both narrow and standard gauge networks but does not cover the construction of new rail lines. Instead, it permits the SWDC to utilise corridors that already link communities, businesses, industrial hubs and economic centres throughout the Southwest.
The approval directly supports the rollout of the South-West Rail, Agro-Industrial & Logistics (SW-RAIL) Platform, a regional initiative designed to sharpen logistics competitiveness, unlock agro-industrial growth, improve mobility and accelerate development across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti States.
Briefing journalists, SWDC Managing Director and CEO Dr. Charles ‘Diji’ Akinola described the licence as a pivotal transition from planning to execution.
“This license is not just a document. It is the green light to rebuild the Southwest’s economic spine on rail,” Akinola said. “We are moving from plans to tracks, from talk to trains. Our partnership with the NRC will put freight on rails, people on trains, and opportunity back into the hands of businesses and communities across the South West.”
He explained that the SW-RAIL Platform is being developed as a rail-anchored economic corridor that integrates freight systems, agro-logistics, industrial parks, inland logistics hubs, cold-chain infrastructure, port connectivity, passenger mobility and transit-oriented developments.
According to Akinola, the Southwest remains Nigeria’s largest economic bloc but continues to grapple with logistics bottlenecks, rising freight costs, congestion and supply chain inefficiencies. The rail initiative, he noted, is expected to lower logistics costs, improve freight efficiency, expand agricultural market access, boost export competitiveness, stimulate industrial activity, enhance passenger mobility and generate jobs across multiple sectors.
By operating directly on NRC corridors, the SWDC aims to offer manufacturers, farmers, exporters, fast-moving consumer goods companies and logistics operators a more reliable alternative to road haulage, easing pressure on major highways and cutting delays in the movement of goods and people. The improved rail integration will also strengthen connectivity between Apapa and Tin Can Island ports and key industrial, agricultural and commercial centres in the Southwest.
Akinola added that agricultural produce and manufactured goods will move more efficiently between production centres, markets, warehouses and export terminals, while corridor-based economic zones are expected to attract investment in warehousing, agro-processing and small and medium enterprise growth.
He stressed that the implementation model will be partnership-driven and open to collaboration with state governments, private investors, logistics operators and international infrastructure partners.