The South-West Development Commission, SWDC, has achieved a major boost for regional trade and mobility as it obtained a provisional rail operating and track access licence from the Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC.
The approval allows the SWDC to begin running passenger and freight trains on existing rail lines across the six South-Western states, a shift from policy talk to on-ground implementation.
Announcing the development to journalists in Ibadan, the SWDC Managing Director, Charles Akinola, described it as a pivotal moment for the region’s economic integration.
He clarified that the licence does not involve building new tracks, but rather operating services on both narrow and standard gauge networks already under the NRC control.
Named the South-West Rail, Agro-Industrial and Logistics Platform, The SW-RAIL, the initiative is designed to tackle rising freight costs, road congestion and supply chain inefficiencies.
Akinola said, “This licence is the green light to rebuild the South-West’s economic spine on rail.
“We are moving from plans to tracks, from talk to trains.”
Integrating freight systems, cold-chain logistics, industrial parks and passenger transport into a unified corridor, the SW-RAIL platform will link ports, farms, factories and cities across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti States.
Akinola noted that while the South-West remains Nigeria’s largest economic bloc, poor logistics continue to drive up business costs, adding that the rail offers a scalable and sustainable solution to reduce those inefficiencies.
The SWDC expects the rail service to lower logistics expenses, boost agricultural exports, create jobs and ease pressure on major highways, while improved connectivity between Apapa and Tin Can ports and inland hubs is also a key target.
Stressing that the model will be partnership-driven, welcoming private investors, state governments and international infrastructure partners, Akinola enthused that the rail initiative follows the recent launch of TransComs, another SWDC programme that turns rural communities into integrated economic clusters.
He maintained that together, both schemes form part of a broader ‘One Bloc Economy’ vision for the region.