Towards a new port order

One of the recent efforts by the Federal Government aimed at addressing the ills of the port system in the country and putting it on a more secure trajectory of sustainability and growth was the appointment of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) as interim port economic regulator. A series of other reforms at the ports had preceded the appointment, including the port concession of 2006.

Industry stakeholders had before now decried the inability of Nigerian ports to compete favourably with other ports in the West and Central African sub-region. Several factors, which included high cost of doing business at the ports, long cargo dwell time, and many others, were responsible for this. The situation was made worse by the absence of an economic regulator at the ports, and so the system operated like sheep without a shepherd. All these factors, taken together, made Nigerian ports unfriendly.

One grave, perhaps unintended, consequence of that scenario was the diversion of Nigerian-bound cargo to neighbouring West African ports, such as Cotonou (Republic of Benin), Accra (Ghana), among others.

Given the crucial role the ports play, and can play, in the growth and development of the economy, the appointment of an economic regulator for the port system is a welcome development.

And we are even made more confident by the fact that even before its appointment as port economic regulator, the NSC had since its creation in 1978 been identified with performing the same regulatory functions with respect to the shipping industry generally. We strongly believe that the council over those years has gathered substantial experience and, therefore, we urge it to bring that wealth of experience to bear on the way it delivers on this assignment in order, ultimately, to usher in a new port order.

A well-developed port system, for us, is one that is fairly priced, automated, settles disputes timely and amicably, efficient, and with easy access to and from the ports. Such a system, in our view, will eliminate corruption and reduce the problem of demurrage and human traffic at the ports and, ultimately, provide enabling environment for wealth creation by all stakeholders using the ports.

It is heartening to note that upon its appointment, the NSC held series of consultations with stakeholders at the ports, including shipping companies, other service providers and agencies of government aimed at charting a way forward. We align with this initiative since, for us, the council cannot work as an island unto itself. For it to succeed in this assignment, the NSC must carry along all stakeholders and work with them to identify problems and areas which must be prioritised to facilitate the speedy transformation of our ports in accordance with global standards.

But in order to maximise the capacity of the council to actualise the mandate given to it, we urge government and all its concerned agencies to facilitate the establishment of the necessary legal framework since, in our opinion, the absence of such legal framework may constitute a cog in the wheel of progress.