The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has promised to improve its services towards making the Nigerian business environment comfortable for industrialists in the country.

NPA's Managing Director, Abdul Salam Mohammed, made the promise last week at the just concluded Lagos International Trade Fair.

He said "As the maritime sector plays important role in the industrial development of any economy, the NPA cannot, therefore, afford to delay in helping industrialists in the Nigerian economy operating at low ebb".

"The importance of an improved Ports Authority is because Nigeria needs to import a lot of industrial equipment and machinery to keep her industries going", he added.

On why the NPA participated at the fair, Mohammed said entrepreneurial development cannot be separated from import and export, and so, the NPA would use the opportunity of making an appearance at the Fair to educate the entrepreneurs on the activities of NPA and to back the Lagos Chamber of Commerce (LCCI) in its quest to improve commerce in the nation's economy.

The NPA boss used the occasion to enlighten the participants on port activities such as Agency services, trucking, intermodalism, terminal operations, freight forwarding services and other ancillary services.

According to him, the ports has a very significant catalyst and high multiplier effect in stimulating and expanding entrepreneurial development in diverse areas of the economy.

He noted that efforts in economic development will come to futility if products and services are not able to move from producers to consumers.