Security concern, ethnic conflict bane of ICD project

The rising spate of insecurity in the country caused by the activities of the dreaded Islamist insurgents group, Boko Haram in the North and the constant cases of kidnapping in the southern parts of the country have been identified as the major factors hindering the effective take-off of inland container depot (ICD).

Also, the intermittent ethnic conflict in the North especially in Plateau State has contributed immensely to the failure of the ICD in Heipang, Jos.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the operation of ICDs/container freight stations (CFSs) at six locations in the country under build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) agreement on March 15, 2006. The project was gazetted vide Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette No.30 volume 94 of May 21, 2007.

ICD is a common user facility equipped with fixed installation and offering services for landing and temporary storage of export, laden and empty containers carried under Customs control, with Customs and other agencies competent to clear goods for home use, warehousing, and export, temporary storage for onward transit and outright export.

BusinessDay findings however show that the Federal Government in 2006 approved for the building of ICDs in strategic locations in the geo-political zones in the country and they include areas such as Erunmu in Oyo State; Heipang in Plateau State; Zawachiki in Kano State; Isiala-Ngwa in Abia State; Maiduguri in Borno State and Funtua in Katsina State. The aim was to bring shipping services to the doorstep of shippers; assist in decongesting the seaports and make them more user-friendly; help revive and modernise the railway as a primary mode for long distance haulage of cargo and assist in the reduction of overall cost of transit cargo to landlocked neighbouring countries.

Amid all these benefits, the effective takeoff of the ICD concept is yet to be actualised seven years after it was conceptualised. This is why the concessionaires of the six ICDs has proposed for upgrading the ICDs to a dry port in order to enable the facilities to function as ports of destination for imports and ports of origin for exports.

Abubakar Sumaila, deputy director, Inland Transport Services of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), disclosed this in Lagos while presenting a paper on ‘Rekindling the Development and Operation of Inland Container Depots Project in Nigeria’, added that the incidents of kidnappings in the South-East had affected the take-off of the ICD in Isiala-Ngwa, Abia State.

According to him, some governments of the host ICD states have failed to meet their obligations in the agreements they had with the concessionaires. These state governments, he said, had failed to release funds to cover their equity share as container in the project agreement.

“Also, the concessionaires have also complained that their financiers and technical partners are not willing to support the project under the current status of the ICDs but will be more willing if it is upgraded to a dry port status,” Abubakar said.

He said that the Nigerian Shippers Council believes strongly believe in the ICD concept because their efficient operations will integrate the country’s transport and logistics chains into the existing port system to ease vehicular and container traffic at the ports.

The NSC, according to him, is not only deploying all resources and energy towards attaining the objectives of the ICDs, but also ensuring it meets international standards and best practices.