Category: Maritime

By Oluwakemi Dauda

 

The Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have been urged to facilitate the establishment of a maritime bank to boost trade.

Stakeholders who spoke with the paper in a separate interviews have pushed for the establishment of the bank with the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) to address inadequate funding of the sector.

An exporter, Mr Demola Adelaja said such bank had become imperative because only few banks were responding to cargo owners, importers, exporters and manufacturers’ needs.

He said almost 15 years after the passage of the Cabotage Act, the sector was still under-funded.

The Federal Government, he said, should use the Cabotage funds domiciled with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to empower Nigerians wishing to acquire vessels.

He called on Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and NIMASA Director-General Dr. Bashir Jamoh to facilitate the establishment of the bank.

Also, a maritime lawyer, Dr Dipo Alaka asked the Federal Government to consider creating a ministry for the maritime sector, just as  the sector was moved out of  the Ministry of Transportation.

Alaka, also a university don, said the creation of the Maritime Ministry will open up more opportunities to generate more revenue, create employment opportunities and help to solve most of the challenges facing the sector.

He said there are some departments in the Ministry of Transportation that are idle and redundant, adding that if the Maritime Ministry is created, some of these departments can brought out to function under the Maritime Ministry. He said it was high time government stopped lumping maritime industry from the Ministry of Transportation, saying that if it creates Maritime Ministry, African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) can be a implemented under the ministry.

An importer, Mr Lekan Agboke, said the bank would eliminate the funding problems in ports’development and operations, ship building and acquisition, ship repairs, marine safety and environmental protection, among others.

Agboke pointed out that the reason Nigeria could not compete in the supply of shipping services at the ports and in multi-modal transport services in the sub-region was yet to be addressed.

He said despite banks’consolidation, they were yet to appreciate the maritime sector’s peculiarity and adequately support its funding.

An industrialist, Chief Raphael Johnson, said it was time for the Federal Government, in collaboration with stakeholders, to drive the right policies that would enable Nigeria become a hub of ship finance companies as was presently the case in Singapore.

He stated a confluence of critical stakeholders, government, shipowners and the finance sector was imperative to induce the much-needed development in indigenous shipping.

Johnson said many stakeholders, government, banks, shipowners, who ventured into ship-financing either shied away from it or traded blames having had their “fingers severely burnt”.

To move the industry forward, he said parties should return to the drawing board and provide for holistic, unbiased appraisals, deliberations and resolutions geared towards the advancement of the sector.

“In Netherlands, United Kingdom and the United States, they have maritime development banks that give out money to the industry at almost one  per cent interest rate. But contrary to what is obtainable in those countries, in Nigeria, you have banks giving loans at interest rates of between 20 and 25 per cent per annum,” he said, adding: “Nigerian banks must forgo short-term profits and support long-term maritime projects.”

Banks, he  said, must take long-term view of funding projects and recognise the value that sustained investments would have on the sector.

The huge number of overtime cargoes at the Lagos ports has become worrisome because of its ripple effect on port operations. Stakeholders in the industry have called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to order the Comptroller-General, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Col Hameed Ali (rtd), to auction about the 4000 containers, thereby free up the Lagos ports as we enter the new year. Oluwakemi Dauda reports

 

Over 4,000 overtime cargoes are dumped at the various terminals at the Apapa Port Complex (LPC) and the Tin Can Island port in Lagos State, The Nation has learnt.

Stakeholders have called for measures to address the issue in the new year.

Investigation have shown that the efficiency of the two ports is being threatened by the overtime goods and Customs seems helpless.

Cargoes are classified as overtime when they have stayed at the ports for more than 30 days without clearance and delivery.

Stakeholders, who spoke with The Nation appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari and Federal Executive Council (FEC) to direct the Nigeria Customs Service (NSC)   to auction the cargoes as provided in the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA).

The National Vice President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Overtime Agents (ANLCA), Dr Kayode Farinto, confirmed that over 4,000 cargo-laden containers worth billions of naira have been abandoned by some importers.

“Containers with very valuable items are not claimed for several months now and the Customs is not serious in moving them out of the ports. This, to say the least, is very disappointing. This, to some extent, is irresponsibility on the  part of those who are supposed to do the needful.

“The Federal Executive Council must ensure that the Act that established the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), which has also prescribed a procedure for disposal of overtime goods and seized cargoes, is  complied with. The only way to dispose the overtime cargoes is captured in the Act.

“Whatever that is defined in the Act is what should be done. It is the responsibility of the government to ensure that our ports are free of overtime cargoes and empty containers. We are talking of how to boost the economy and multi-billion naira goods are rotting

Findings have shown that overtime cargoes occupy over 30 per cent of the terminals in Lagos.

An exporter Mr Felix Okoye, said: “The Customs Service is empowered by law to auction overtime cargoes to free up the space in the port and recover government revenue. Not auctioning those cargoes that have been in the port for more than a year does not serve the best interest of the people, government and of the operator.

“I appeal to President Buhari to direct the Nigeria Customs Service to free up the space in the port by auctioning those overtime cargoes to bring efficiency to our port. Over N20 billion goods are rotting away at the port and the Federal Government is not doing anything about it.”

 

Overtime cargoes

Before the ports were concessioned about 15 years ago, the issue of overtime cargo was rife. The NCS has the power to auction any cargo, which spends over 90 days at the ports without being cleared.

Before the concession, such cargoes could be found at any port and they stayed until the owners were ready to clear them. The demurrage was small then, and the owners could afford to play with time. Some importers falsified the date the goods arrived at the ports to reduce the demurrage.

But this changed when the terminal operators took over the ports. Any importer who delays in clearing his goods pays heavy demurrage. In some cases, some terminals have been accused of causing delays to create more room for the cargoes to stay at the ports and attract demurrage. But agencies-owned containers could be granted waiver on the intervention of the government.

A senior Customs officer who craved anonymity said the failure to clear them after a year might be as a result of bureaucratic bottlenecks in government departments.

He said: ‘’Some importers may have lost interest in clearing them because of the cost involved.

“Sometimes, an importer may decide to forget some goods if the clearance will lead to more losses. This is when some trade goods enter overtime and accumulate more demurrage that clearing them will be expensive.The worth of overtime cargoes in the ports within and outside the Lagos ports is over N30billion.

“There is no doubt that the importers, particularly those who own the goods that are under prohibition list, may no longer be interested in the goods apparently because there is no way they can move them out of the port because of the eagle eyes of security officials at the ports.

“Also, there are some goods that have lost their value as a result of time. Although it is the duty of Customs to auction goods, the experience has been that only items that are valuable were sold off as quickly as possible to some highly placed Nigerians in the past.

“This does not appear to have been the same trend since the tenure of Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) as a Customs boss. And the reasons are obvious.”

A highly placed source said Ali could not carry out auction sales because he would need the approval of the Minister of Finance and that is why the President and the FEC must give an instruction to the ministers of Transport and Finance to ensure that the overtime cargoes are auction in no time.

 

Why importers abandoned  cargoes

Investigation show that many importers abandon their containers for various reasons. An importer, for example, may run out of funds to clear his goods. This often leads to more demurrage. Some cheat the government on any consignment.

In the process, they lose the goods as they are not able to settle the issue within the time allowed to clear the goods. Paying the amount on the debit note and the demurrage on the goods could be difficult. Some importers resort to bribing to buy the same goods at auction from the Customs.

It does not appear that such arrangement exists under the change mantra of the leadership of the Customs. Some importers even bring in prohibited goods, which are seized and left to rot at the ports.

The sector showed resilience in 2020 and played a major role in stabilising the country against the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic. But the sea remained rough for the sector, reports OLUWAKEMI DAUDA

The decision of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) and Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) to ensure that the ports remained opened by the Federal Government during the global pandemic was one of the best decisions in 2020 to save the economy and the country from total lockdown.

COVID-19 pandemic and maritime

The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on economies of the world, on a global scale as economists and fiscal policy experts associate its effect as the worst global economic crisis of the century in comparison with the global economic recession of 2008 and the economic depression of the 1930s. The impact of the pandemic has reverberated across several sectors, particularly the maritime.

The year started on a familiar note with congestion issues pitting cargo owners against terminal operators in terms of demurrage and storage waivers. The year inherited cargoes that had spilled over from the previous year due to the border closure policy of the Federal Government, which forced many cargoes that would ordinarily have come in through the borders, to come in through the seaports. With congestion crippling port operations, NPA waded in during the critical period.

On January 27, 2020, NPA  started diverting vessels that had been held up for longer periods of time in the congestion crisis rocking the Lagos ports to other ports, including the Eastern ports of Onne, Rivers and Calabar. Stakeholders applauded NPA for diverting vessels to other ports in the face of congestion and COVID-19 pandemic

For many cargo owners, the COVID-19 restrictions meant many could not come to the ports to clear their cargoes, thereby forcing the NPA to impose a 21-day suspension of demurrage and storage charges by terminal operators and shipping firms to cushion the effect of the pandemic on port operations.

Biggest vessel arrival

In August 2020, the sector received the biggest vessel to ever berth at any Nigerian port, the Maerskline Stardelhorn. With a length overall of 300 meters, width of 48 metres, the Maerskline Stardelhorn which has a capacity of 9,971(TEUs) was received at the Federal Ocean Terminal (FOT), Onne in Rivers State. This vindicated NPA’s claim that the eastern ports are well equipped to receive bigger vessels, raising hopes that more consignees will be using the eastern port as from  next year.

New investments in capacity

Over N33 billion was invested by the Federal Government, through the NPA, during the period on  two new multi million dollars state-of-the-art Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHCs) acquired by leading global terminal operator, APM Terminals, to boost service delivery at the Apapa Port, Lagos.

On the Apapa gridlock that has plagued the ports through the year; the prospect of an electronic call-up system in January of 2021 might just be the game-changer the ports have been waiting for.

According to the NPA, an e-commerce system to serve as a communication system for the port is being designed and it may be ready by next year.

Unfortunate twist

However, on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, hoodlums that hijacked the #EndSARS protests  reportedly vandalised and set a wing of the NPA building at Marina, Lagos on fire.

After attacking, disarming and chasing the security personnel on duty, the attackers proceeded to burn and vandalise several vehicles belonging to the Authority and some members of staff. They, thereafter, set a wing of the office building on fire.

According to NPA’s Managing Director, Hadiza Bala-Usman,  N807 million had been earmarked for the rehabilitation of the burnt portion of its building. Also, money would be spent to replace the 27 vehicles set ablaze by the vandals and three  stolen vehicles.

“Aside from burnt building and vehicles, other working tools like 317 computers were looted as well as photocopiers, the cost of replacement of which will be above N1 billion when added to the N807 million already estimated for rehabilitation of the burnt building,” Bala-Usman said.

The nationwide #EndSARS protests also paralysed activities at the Lagos Ports as port users embarked on peaceful protest in solidarity with other Nigerians over the continuous harassment and extortion by law enforcement agents.

The protest was staged at Apapa Wharf Gate and Tin Can Island first and second Gates. The protesters included trucks drivers and trucks owners, motor boys, and other port users who demanded that the entire law enforcement agents; Police, Army, Lagos State Traffic  Management Agency (LASTMA), Customs, port authority security should all be disbanded from the port access roads.

Increased port revenue

The NPA in October 2020 revealed that it generated a total revenue of N1.02 trillion in the space of three years. This was contained in a statement released by the authority in early October. In the statement, the NPA revenue in 2016 went up to N182.42 billion against the N173.447 billion generated in 2015.

Meanwhile, the Director General  Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh,  has set up a three point agenda for the  repositioning the maritime industry in a manner that would enhances transparency, accountability and meaningful contribution to Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) as well as its economic development.

Within Jamoh’s 100 days in office, NIMASA witnessed major promotions, where over 600 staff were promoted. Nine staff were promoted to the position of directors, with about six female staff among those who rose to be directors. This was seen as  manifestation of the DG’s bid to balance gender equality in the sector.

Also Jamoh reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to the establishment of a strong and sustainable national fleet and we hope he would push for early disbursement of Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) to the indigenous ship owners to increase their fleet and participate in oil lifting

Border closure

Meanwhile, 16 months after the Federal Government ordered the closure of Nigeria’s land borders with neighbouring countries, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the recommendation of a committee for the  reopening of four land borders with immediate effect, while others are expected to be reopened in due course. But despite the order for the borders to be reopened  by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Seme border in Lagos was still shut to movement of goods when The Nation visited the place few days ago. The borders were closed on August 20, 2019 to stop the entry of illegal arms among others into the country

With the Federal Government’s avowed determination to diversify the economy from oil, stakeholders hope necessary attention would be shifted to the maritime sector to generate enough foreign revenue the government needs to boost the economy.

The United Nations (UN) has started investigation into human rights abuses associated with the global shipping industry and exposure to toxic chemicals without prior consent.

Through its Human Rights Agency (UNOHCR), it has appointed a Special Rapporteur to look into these issues and report back.

Earlier this week, a special investigation in Forbes revealed a growing scandal behind this year’s hasty introduction of a highly hazardous and experimental type of oil in ships.

The ship fuel is called Very Low Sulfur Fuel Oil or VLSFO. It contains a wide variety of undefined toxic chemicals, is now in 70per cent of all ships, and is likely to be an important focus for the inquiry. This fuel – which NGOs have referred to as a super-pollutant ‘Frankenstein Fuel’ – is already suspected as a leading root cause of many shipping disasters around the world, putting the lives of sailors and coastal communities at risk, due to the use of unknown and highly volatile chemicals.

The lead investigator for the UN Human Rights Agency has already begun interviewing officials at the global shipping regulator, the International Maritime Organization. The inquiry will continue collecting evidence through to  January 31, 2021.

The investigation will cover both the human rights implications for seafarers on vessels who would have been exposed to the effects of toxic chemicals, as well as to those impacted by oil spills, such as islanders in Mauritius this year and Solomon Islands last year.

The global body has called the exposure of people to harmful substances without their prior informed consent a human rights abuse. It has also said it is a human rights issue for which solutions exist. The question the rapporteur will focus on is why known solutions had not been applied in the shipping industry.

The U.N. has been looking at human rights abuses linked to hazardous substances since a formal mandate was established by the U.N. Human Rights Council 25 years ago in 1995. On 6 October 2020, the U.N. Human Rights Council passed a resolution to look deeper into several issues associated with exposure to harmful substances without prior consent.

The Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights is Dr. Marcos Orellana who was appointed earlier this year by the UN Human Rights body.

Orellana teaches Environmental Law at George Washington University School of Law in the United States, and had been involved in several high profile environmental justice cases. These have covered international human rights law and the environment including presenting at the U.N. Human Rights Council, International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea, and in participating in international negotiations on Climate Change. He was worked extensively with Governments and NGOs around the world.

The Head of the UN Human Rights Commission – former two term President of Chile Michelle Bachelet – has been a strong advocate for protecting Human Rights of what she describes as the planet’s ‘Environmental Defenders.’

In 2019, Bachelet brought up these human rights issues against environmentalists at the U.N. Human Rights Council, specifically highlighting the verbal attacks against the then 16 year old climate activist Greta Thunberg.

In August last year, the UN Humans Right Office signed a formal agreement with the UN’s Environment Protection Program (UNEP) to strengthen human rights and the planet.

At the time, UN Human Rights Chief, Michelle Bachelet said, “Our planet is being recklessly destroyed, and we urgently need stronger global partnerships to take action to save it. We call on leaders and governments to recognize that climate change and environmental degradation severely undermine the human rights of their people, particularly those in vulnerable situations – including the generations of tomorrow.”

“We encourage every State to develop and enforce national legal frameworks which uphold the clear linkages between a healthy environment and the ability to enjoy all other human rights, including the rights to health, water, food – and even the right to life,” she added. “We also strongly encourage greater recognition that the actions and advocacy of environmental human rights defenders are deeply beneficial to all societies. They must be better protected against the threat of violence and intimidation.”

Reports suggest that more than four environmental defenders were killed across the world every week in 2019. This rate has doubled in the last 15 years. The latest death toll highlights the ongoing dangers facing those who are defending their environmental and human rights.

This is the first time the global shipping industry has been subject to such a wide ranging Human Rights inquiry over exposure to toxins without consent.

The inquiry will also look into many of the root causes for how the industry has allowed such a situation to develop in shipping, such as poorly drafted laws, little oversight and monitoring of these laws, deliberately weak enforcement, pressure on poorer nations and communities to be responsible for cleaning up the risks caused by large shipping firms.

There has been a growing spate of maritime incidents that many local communities around the world have been calling for justice on. These include communities in Trinidad, Venezuela, Sri Lanka, around the coast of the Red Sea, Mauritius and Lebanon just this year alone.

There are three themes that are likely to be particularly important for the investigation into shipping, human rights and toxins.

The Special Rapporteur has highlighted that he will look at both toxins spilled from ships, as well as air pollution released from ships that are adding to the climate crisis.

Climate crisis: Indigenous communities in Arctic nations, and coastal communities on low lying island nations are particularly impacted by melting ice caps, rising sea levels and more acidifying oceans impacting coral reef protection. This year, the global shipping industry not only decided to break with Paris Climate Agreement pledges, but the Secretary General of the IMO actively tried to undermine the EU’s own carbon emission regulations for shipping. This is in addition to the U.K. Parliament already calling the IMO no longer ‘fit for purpose,’ for its stance on climate issues. Global shipping has been particularly criticized for using toxic chemicals in ship fuels across the Arctic that could accelerate climate change.

Toxins in ship oil (especially the VLSFO ‘Frankenstein Fuel’): The Special Rapporteur will also be looking at the risk of oil pollution, which has been increasing as ships have become larger, and yet ship designs and protection have not kept pace, a sign of major regulatory failure. The fuel now used by 70per cent of ships, called VLSFO and which was introduced this year, is likely to be a major focus for the Special Rapporteur.

Tens of thousands in Mauritius were exposed to VLSFO in the summer, and the shipping companies responsible have not provided a full chemical analysis breakdown of the toxins that the population was exposed to, including what the health risks are. This represents a major human rights abuse, as many in South East Mauritius who were exposed have been reporting serious health conditions (e.g., skin infections, breathing difficulties and mental illness), that have not been taken seriously by the companies responsible for bringing the pollution to Mauritius. Other communities impacted by ship fuel spills like Solomon Islands last year have seen similar experiences.

Gender impact of oil spills: Oil spills have a disproportionate impact on women. The chemicals have a much more significant on female reproductive organs and health, affecting the health of unborn children. Many women faced greater social and financial pressures following the oil spill as they had been employed in the informal sector (e.g., supporting husbands in the fishing business or making tourist products to be sold on informal beach stands), and so were not eligible for any compensation from funds allocated to the response. The gender dimension was completely dismissed by the companies and countries responding to the oil spill disaster in Mauritius, where in over 100 international consultants, not one was female. This created additional conflict in a country like Mauritius, where it was actually many of the female leaders who had led the response to the oil spill and the fight for environmental and social justice.

Human rights abuses in the response to the oil spill: In what is likely to be a damning assessment of the corporate response to the oil spill in Mauritius, the Special Rapporteur’s scope includes evaluating potential human rights abuses in how the oil spill was responded to. In Mauritius, the response by companies responsible saw a massive disruption of the social cohesion of Mauritius. The grassroots led movement that built the artisanal oil protection booms were sidelined by over 100 unaccountable international consultants who never once held a joint press conference to explain what was going on nor allowed any independent oversight of the cleanup techniques they were deploying.

 

By Muyiwa Lucas

 

Following the Federal Government’s reopening of the land borders to trade, Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma has called on  the Federal Government to expunge unrealistic fiscal policies which are incentives for importers to patronise the country’s neighbouring seaports.

Uzodimma, a former Chairman Senate Committee on Customs, also decried the multiplicity of Customs Units at ports access roads and highways; adding that it is wrong of Customs to seize consignments already cleared  by its officers.

Uzodimma, who made this known during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), in Owerri, the Imo State capital, also called for a robust synergy between freight agents and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to dissipate the challenges with cargo evacuation from ports and border posts.

According to him, this partnership would also foster the nation’s bid to diversify the economy and boost non-oil revenue with numerous potentials from the maritime sector.

His words: “Cotonou port is very busy because of some unrealistic fiscal policies in Nigeria. What is the essence of placing the import duty of cars at 35 percent or more, when the country doesn’t produce cars? Isn’t it only reasonable for the government in Benin, Togo and other neighboring countries to peg their import duties at five percent to target Nigerian cargoes?

“Nigerians don’t smuggle and research has shown that those involved in big time smuggling in the country aren’t Nigerians. We know that those who do bulk importation of smuggled items are foreigners. They go to Cotonou to clear the cars at five percent duties and explore the avenues of bringing the exotic vehicles via bushes and other unapproved border routes.

“Until Nigeria is ready to assemble cars that are affordable and can compete with those imported, we must allow people to bring in imported cars and build non-oil revenue for the country. Government doesn’t really have a choice because of the dwindling non-oil revenue. The maritime sector must be harnessed as one of the viable alternatives and good fiscal policies would be needed to achieve this.”

He argued that until Nigeria is ready to assemble cars that are affordable and can compete with those imported, the government must allow people to bring in imported cars and build non-oil revenue for the country.

Noting that the job of a licensed Customs agent is also linked to national security, he said: “If all security policies and programmes are sabotaged by you, it will not work. So, in the spirit of patriotism and national interest, I will urge you to close ranks with all agencies of government in the security sector and the business sector so that we will be able to protect our interest as a nation and unite Nigeria further.”

Meanwhile, ANLCA has elected nine members into its Board of Trustees (BOT). They include: Dr. Taiwo Afolabi, Executive Vice Chairman of SIFAX Group;  Chief Ozor Chukwura, Chief Kingsley Offor, Eniola John and Shamsideen Akanji.

Others are Obi Azodo, Alhaji Isa Aliyu, Timothy Ayokunle and Chief Igwe Odinaka.

At the same event, Uzodimma was decorated as Grand Patron of ANLCA, and  Chief Henry Njoku  with another chieftain of the association  were also made patrons of ANLCA.

The association’s constitution was also reviewed to allow only single tenure for elected leaders.

In his opening remarks, the ANLCA President, Hon. Iju Tony  Nwabunike said ANLCA would continue to pursue the interest of members in the areas of operational challenges, including government policies that are not favourable to the interest of the maritime industry at large.

As many shipping firms are complying with the Federal Government’s directives on Nigerian Export Proceed (NXP) numbers, OLUWAKEMI DAUDA looks at the reason the government needs to diversify its export base away from oil so that the country can win its battles against unemployment and  poverty.

 

With the collapse of oil prices at the international market, exporters and other stakeholders in the maritime industry said the country has to navigate a major oil price crisis  worsened by the coronavirus pandemic.

This, stakeholders said, underscores the need for Nigeria to look outward, diversifying its export base away from the volatile commodity, if the country is to win its battles against unemployment, insecurity and poverty.

 

Export of non-oil goods:

As the new year is fast approaching, the Federal Government has been urged to make export of non-oil goods one of the determinants of the economic growth and development of the country.

The Federal Government, the stakeholders’ said, needs to formulate policies and develop strategies that will lead to increase in exports  and makes it rank among the highest priorities of its agenda for next year, to stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty.

Apart from the fact that exporting is beneficial to the nation’s economy, maritime analyst and exporter Mr Gbolahan Adetiba, urged the government to intensify efforts on the export of non-crude oil to continue togenerate revenue and foreign exchange needed to develop the economy further, while taking a bold step that would lead to the diversification of the economy on a large scale.

Adetiba urged the government to invest disproportionate amount of the nation”s resources on maritime trade,  agriculture and other mineral resources to ensure  a balanced term of trade, economic growth and development

Findings revealed that many shipping companies are complying with the Federal Government’s directives on Nigerian Export Proceed (NXP) numbers.

The Form NXP is a mandatory document to be completed by all exporters through authorised dealer bank for shipment of goods outside Nigeria irrespective of the value and whether or not payment is involved. Any customer willing to engage in export business is required to register with the Nigeria Export Promotion Council.

Investigation has also shown that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), in partnership with the CBN has carried out three sensitisation meetings in Lagos and Port Harcourt to educate shipping companies and exporters on the need to implement the directive on the NXP.

Its Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello, told The Nation that the NSC is also working with other relevant agencies of government  and exporters to ensure full compliance so that exports without the NXP are discontinued.

Bello said the Federal Government would always encourage investors in the maritime industry with incentives and called on shipping companies to follow the directive issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to enhance their operations.

Bello said he appreciated the terminal operators for the removal of demurrage charges on cargoes last week covering the period of the #EndSARS protest.

“We are visiting to see the challenges confronting terminal operators after the disruption of operation during the protest. We also want to ensure that there are no spillovers that will affect the nation’s economy, as it will have adverse consequences. Shippers were not able to remove their cargoes so there is need to think about it and come up with incentives so that they can do so,” he said.

Bello noted that the NSC, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) are working to ensure tax incentives and for terminal operators to have 98 per cent independent power supply.

Another exporter, Mr Leke Adetowubo, said the best government could do “is to eliminate the obstacles to the smooth functioning of market forces and provide information to exporting firms about destination markets and foreign competitors’’.

“The two principal compositions of Nigerian exports are oil and non-oil exports. In the past, non-oil exports, led by primary commodities, drove the economic growth of Nigeria. However, this template changed with the discovery of crude oil in 1956. With the increased exploration activities, revenues accruing from oil export have led to increased foreign exchange earnings, more revenue for government, and higher contribution to GDP.”

The government, Adetowubo said, needs to open  up  the economy  and  pursue  external-oriented  trade  policies  by  vigorously  pursuing  export  to  achieve  growth  and development.

“There is an avalanche of evidence  to show that exports are correlated with economic growth and development of countries – developing and developed alike.

“Nigerian export earnings from major agricultural crops contributed significantly to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Non-oil exports comprise agricultural products, solid minerals, textiles, manpower, etc. It is made up of every other thing we export from Nigeria except petroleum products. Manufactured exports consist of textiles, beer, cocoa butter, plastic products, processed timber, tyres, natural spring water, soap, detergent  and fabricated iron rods.  Agricultural export merchandise included cocoa, groundnut, palm oil, cotton, rubber, yarn,  palm products,  fish and shrimps.

 

Increasing the availability of credit

The availability of short and long-term credit is crucial to exporters. This is necessary for small and medium enterprises, for which the credit constraints are more binding than for large firms. Since SMEs make up the large majority of firms, improvements in this area are necessary to favour export development.

 

Simplifying regulation

The government needs to simplify regulation related to exports; long bureaucracy procedures negatively affect especially new exporters. At the same time, governments should improve information collection and dissemination about foreign markets and requirements for exporting.

 

Improving cooperation among economic actors

Besides traditional policy instruments, export growth could be favoured by improving cooperation among exporters and between the government and business actors.  The stimulation of export growth requires the combination of short- and long-term policies.

Strategic collaboration between different levels of government and the private sector is widely considered a key element for policy success.

 

A  shipper, Mr  Sunday Felix, also called on the government  to enhance the domestic enabling environment for potential exporters in terms of infrastructures, regulation, access to finance, insurance, fiscal policies; foster the strategic cooperation between private and public actors and among domestic producers, exporters, and policymakers; improve the productivity and technological content of domestic goods, and provide incentives to nurture innovation; facilitate the access to credit, serve to build the country image in foreign markets; offer targeted and tailored assistance, and rely on continuous evaluation. These are required  to be supported by monetary and fiscal policies designed to improve the enabling environment; and stimulate institutional development.

Beyond the parlous state of port access roads in Apapa, Lagos, lie other contributory factors like extortion, among others, causing agony daily to port users and commuters. Stakeholders are unanimous that until decisive steps are taken to eliminate the anomaly, making the roads and the environs gridlock free will remain a pipe dream, MUYIWA LUCAS reports.

Importers, clearing agents and truck owners have expressed concerns over the worsening gridlock on port access road at the Tin Can Island Port Complex (TCIPC), Lagos, accusing officials of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Security Department, Police and the Presidential Task Team on Apapa gridlock, who were deployed to manage traffic, of extortion.

The stakeholders said in addition to the poor condition of the roads, extortion by security and traffic control officials remained the major cause of the unending gridlock on the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway.

Recent reports have exposed a well-organised racket of security officials at the Tin Can Island Port Complex, who extort between N70,000 and N200,000 per truck before they are allowed into the port.

Some truck drivers who expressed frustration over the development yesterday, accused NPA Security Department officials, Police and the Presidential Task Team of demanding huge sums of money from them before their trucks are granted access into the port.

The situation, it was gathered, has negatively affected port operation as cargo delivery has been considerably slowed down. It has also led to a sudden rise in haulage and shipping cost, thereby fuelling inflation in the country.

A truck owner and an executive member of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Sanni Bala, said the security agents and the Task Team on Apapa gridlock demand huge sums of money between N70,000 and N200,000, depending on the “bargaining power” of the driver to be allowed into the port.

He said: “The issue of unlawful extortion by NPA security officials, police and the Presidential Task Team along Apapa and Tin Can Port road axis has become a daily occurrence and an institutionalised phenomenon that is taking a serious toll on the income of truck owners and exacerbating the plight of motorists on that axis.

“The issue of traffic on the access road is artificial and caused by human factor because without the traffic, there is no how they can extort people, so they have to create the traffic by delaying truckers.

“They collect ranging from N70,000 to N200, 000 and as a result, many truckers have been left with nothing to take home and maintain their trucks and yet the Lagos State Government will be complaining of rickety trucks on the roads whereas it is the outcome of the extortion by Police and others and they have refused to vacate the roads.”

The Chairman of AMATO, Chief Remi Ogungbemi, corroborated Bala, saying: “What is happening at Tin Can is a situation of the more you look, the less you see. Business is still going on as usual and the Task Team has refused to leave because they are benefiting from the chaos. They have formed a cartel and if you are not in that group, they will not pass your truck no matter who you are.”

A clearing agent at the Tin Can Island Port, Ojo Akintoye, said there were more than four road blocks between Tin Can Island Port First and Second Gates set up by the Presidential Task Team, Police and NPA officials, where each truck driver is expected to pay before being allowed passage into the port.

He said: “The extortion by NPA and other security agencies who claim to be controlling traffic on the road is the cause of the impediment we are experiencing daily along the port access road.

“From First Gate to Second Gate, we have about four road blocks mounted by the security agents and the trucks must part with money before they can move. As we speak, we pay between N1.1 million and N1.2 million per truck as against N100,000 to move our containers out of the port. The cheapest truck you can get to hire is N1 million. We have never experienced it this way before.’’

The National Vice President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Prince Kayode Farinto, called for the disbandment of the Presidential Task Team, which he said had become “a money-making machine”.

According to him, clearing agents lose an average of N300 million weekly to illegal collection by NPA security officials, Police and members of the Presidential Task Team, adding that to enter the port, truck operators pay as much as N280,000 to security operatives on the road.

Farinto also lamented the absence of an electronic call-up system, saying that the manual call up system being used by the NPA was fuelling corruption.

In February, the House of Representatives resolved to investigate extortion of truck drivers in Apapa by security operatives. The resolution was made after lawmakers identified extortion by security officials as being a major factor responsible for the traffic challenges, as operatives delayed the movement of truck drivers who refused to cooperate with them.

The House took the resolution consequent upon a motion titled “Urgent Need to Investigate the Unwarranted Extortion of Truck Operators and other port users by Law Enforcement Agents at Apapa Port”, moved by Olusola Fatoba from Ekiti State.

Moving the motion, Fatoba said truck operators pay as high as  N300,000 to gain access into the port.

He said the House was worried that law enforcement agents who were to maintain law and order at the ports have formed a “cartel” in cahoots with unscrupulous port officials, extorting money ranging from N200,000 to N300,000 per truck to gain entrance into the port, to load or offload containers.

He said the “ugly trend” had been going on unabated for years, “but became worse after naval officers were removed from the operations, as the sum of N60,000 to N100,000 was extorted when the naval officers were in charge of the operation.”

He said the House was also worried that, as a result of the activities of law enforcement agents in Apapa, “a truck may spend up to two months before gaining access into the terminal which is causing a lot of hardships and huge increase in the cost of doing business which may inevitably lead to unrest and breakdown of law and order by the frustrated and oppressed truck operators”.