section_path: Economy/Ports
section_name: Ports
paragraph_text: Ports
  
  The Port of Lagos, formally known as the Lagos-Elbert Mathews Memorial Port, is Nigeria's leading port and one of the largest and busiest Ports in Africa. Due to the large urban population, Lagos is categorized as a medium-port megacity using the Southampton System for port-city classification. It is administered by the Nigerian Ports Authority.
  
  The Port of Lagos / Apapa is the oldest and largest port in the country, both in terms of land area and cargo volume handled. More than half of Nigeria's maritime trade is handled here, and the port also acts as a transshipment point for landlocked countries such as Chad and Niger. Around 1,000 ships with 5,700,000 tonnes of cargo call at the Lagos port complex annually.
  
  Tin Can Island Port is located west of Apapa near the Lagos Port Complex. It was established in 1975.
  
  In early 2023, the deep sea port of Lekki was commissioned 50 km east of Lagos. This thus does not belong to the urban area of Lagos, but to the state of the same name.