Nigeria’s rail transportation sector witnessed a massive decline in revenue in the second (Q2) of 2022.
The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), revealed that the total revenue generated from passengers dropped by N1.48 billion, which reveals a 71% decline when compared to the first quarter of this year.
A recent report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), reveals that a total of 422,393 passengers traveled by train in Q2 2022, while in the first quarter (Q1) of the year, it recorded a total of 953,099.
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In terms of revenue generated, the sector recorded N598,736,300 in the second quarter (Q2), while in the first quarter (Q1) it recorded a total of N2,077,836,686.
Revenue generated from goods/cargos in Q2 2022 was N86,007,680, while revenue generated from goods/cargos in Q1 2022 was N71,769,967.
The report however reveals that there was a massive decline in revenue generated by passengers in the second quarter (Q2) of 2022, while that of cargo and goods, there was an increase in the revenue generated in the second quarter (Q2) when compared to the first quarter (Q1) of 2022.
The massive decline in the revenue generated in the rail transportation sector doesn’t come as a surprise, due to the fact that Nigeria is currently ravaged by insecurity challenges.
In recent times, insecurity has dominated discourse across the country, as banditry, kidnapping and terrorism has heightened in the country.
Recall that on March 28, 2022, an Abuja-Kaduna train was attacked in Katari Kaduna state, which recorded at least Eight (8) deaths and sixty-two abducted passengers, with N6 billion ransom reportedly paid to the terrorists.
This horrifying incident has reduced the patronage of citizens traveling by rail, as most of them disclosed that the excitement of traveling by rail diminished after the horrific Abuja-Kaduna train attack.
Security experts and analysts have therefore disclosed that the train transportation sector will witness a further decline if the issues of insecurity is not checked. Insecurity in the country has transcended from road to rail transportation, impacting negatively the government’s revenue from railway operations.
In a bid to ensure the safety of train passengers in the country, the federal government approved the sum of N718 million for security services and surveillance of the Abuja Light Rail Mass Transit System.
This was disclosed by the FCT Minister, Muhammed Bello, during a briefing of State House correspondents two months ago.