NIMASA grants N4.955bn for establishment of 4 maritime institutes

As part of the implementation of the provisions of its 2013 budget, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has granted the sum of N4.955 billion to four selected tertiary institutions for the establishment of maritime institutes within the schools.

Ziakede Patrick Akpobolokemi, director general of NIMASA, disclosed this in Lagos on Monday when he received members of the Senate Committee on Marine Transport who were on an oversight visit to the agency.

According to him, the benefitting universities include Niger-Delta University, which was given the sum of N1,735,144,775.00; University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), which was given the sum of N1,190,849,675; IBB University, Lapai, Niger State, which received N1,072,267,437, and the University of Lagos, which was given the total sum of N957,049,410.

He also disclosed that the agency has lost the right to build another maritime academy in Badagry to the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) as directed by the Federal Government.

“The Federal Government in the letters with reference numbers HCSF/PSO/PARA/462/S.I/T and DG. 468/265 dated January 14, 2014, directed NIMASA to cede the property for the building of the proposed Maritime Academy in Badagry back to ASCON. And the agency has already ceded the project to ASCON as directed,” the NIMASA boss said.

In her response, Zainab Kure, the committee chairman, noted that the essence of the visit was to appraise the agency’s budget performance in order to match the projects on ground with the allocations in the budget. She added that the committee would not rate NIMASA’s performance until it had a holistic assessment of the entire projects located in both Lagos and the South-South.

Kure also disclosed that her committee had seen the four out of the six security boats that were procured by the agency in the year under review, adding that the committee, in accordance with the presidential directive, needed to ensure that ongoing projects were completed before the introduction of new projects. She further assured, however, that the appraisal would not in any way delay the passage of the 2014 budget.