Stakeholders suggest ways to improve operations in seaports

Industry stakeholders, who took turns to speak at a recent town hall meeting held in Lagos, have suggested ways to improve port operations and to achieve the desired hub port status in the West and Central Africa sub-region.

Hassan Bello, executive secretary, Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), said that Nigeria was rated number 169, Togo 154, Benin Republic 155 and Niger rated 150 during 2017 global ease of doing business ranking.

Bello, who was represented by Ifeora Celine, assistant director of the NSC, said that Customs needs to lead by example and not allow agents to be dictating their time of resumption. “I have visited Customs examination centres and officers don’t come till late in the afternoon.

“Customs officers should be up and doing and any agent that could not meet up with the time should be made to pay a fine,” Bello said.

Bello said that Nigerian ports was working toward engaging the operation of trackers in electronic methods, to free the port access roads from congestion by trucks using port roads as their parking bays.

He called for provision of scanners in all terminals to reduce the rate of physical exanimation and the time of doing business at the ports.

Hadiza Usman, the managing director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), who was also represented by the general manager, Marine and Operations, Joshua Asanga, said the concessioning era had tremendous improvement in port development. She said that concession had shaped the business attitude of Nigerians, especially in port operations.

Port concession, she said, has helped to reduce cargo dwell time and had also improved the depth of the water channel from 10 metres to more than 13 metres which encouraged bigger ships to berth in Nigerian ports.

Dakuku Peterside, the director-general, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), who urged both government agencies and stakeholders to work together, said that about 85 percent of Nigerian goods were imported.

Peterside, who was represented by director, Shipping Development of NIMASA, Anthony Ogadi, said that all agricultural raw materials and semi-processed goods being exported were poorly priced due to unfavourable cargo handing process.

“With the high cost of imported goods coupled with the accruable lean export earnings from non-oil exports, the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) remains perpetually low. The Federal Government should be free from the costs it incurred in developing or managing port operations,” Peterside added.

Uzoamaka Anagor-Ewuzie