Former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Dr Dakuku Peterside, has challenged the Nigerian media to play a more active role in driving the country towards its ambition of building a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
Peterside said the target could not be achieved through ambition alone, stressing the need for a clear strategy, strong institutions, infrastructure, increased productivity, critical investments and accountability.
He spoke at the 2026 Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Lagos State Council Press Week Public Lecture in Lagos, with the theme: “Politics, Ports and Public Interest: The Media’s Catalytic Role in Driving Economic Growth in Nigeria.”
According to Peterside, the media has a responsibility to interrogate the strategies and policies being deployed to achieve Nigeria’s economic ambition, rather than merely reporting government targets and official activities.
“These questions become even more important when we consider Nigeria’s stated ambition to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030,” he said.
Peterside argued that an economic ambition without a corresponding strategy would not guarantee results, stressing that journalists should continuously ask how the country intends to achieve its economic targets.
“Ambition is not strategy,” he said, adding that the media should question the institutions, infrastructure, productivity levels and accountability mechanisms required to translate the ambition into measurable economic outcomes.
He said journalists could contribute to economic growth by turning citizens’ experiences and private frustrations into issues of public accountability that government and relevant institutions could not ignore.
According to him, the media cannot directly build infrastructure, operate ships or manufacture goods, but can create the accountability needed to make those activities more efficient and beneficial to Nigerians.
Peterside also linked the media’s role to the performance of Nigeria’s ports, noting that the maritime sector has implications for the cost of goods, business competitiveness, exports, manufacturing and employment.
He said journalists should look beyond port revenue and cargo throughput to examine whether port operations are reducing business costs, supporting manufacturers and farmers, attracting investment and creating economic opportunities beyond the port environment.
The former NIMASA DG criticised what he described as the growing tendency among journalists to reproduce press releases without sufficient investigation or verification.
“It’s not enough for us to collect press releases and just issue press releases,” he said, urging journalists to research claims, investigate bottlenecks and ask critical questions of government agencies and port operators.
Peterside said effective media scrutiny could help Nigerians understand the connection between government decisions, port efficiency and the prices of goods and services.
He explained that delays at the ports could increase the cost of imported goods and affect exporters, particularly where delays involve perishable agricultural products.
Earlier, NUJ Lagos State Council Chairman, Adeleye Ajayi, said the media had a strategic responsibility to shape public discourse and promote accountability, particularly in sectors such as maritime that have significant implications for Nigeria’s economy.
Ajayi also urged journalists to go beyond reporting events by interrogating policies, exposing gaps and providing information that could contribute to economic development.