Muyiwa LUCAS
The President, Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), Dr. Mkgeorge Onyung, has urged the Federal Government to pay more attention to the shipping industry.
“If you are not shipping, you are not shopping,” Onyung said.
He noted that the ocean is not just two-third of the earth, the tool for harnessing the oceans, which indeed is shipping, has also snowballed into the biggest business around the world, through which cargoes are moved, with wealth and employment opportunities harvested.
Onyung said not less than 90 per cent of the world trade comes through the ocean, said a conference with the theme: Shipping, global economy and national development was underway. The conference will hold between November 27 and 28, at the Oriental Hotel, in Victoria Island, Lagos.
He said it is a well-timed conference coming on the heels of the Abuja 2019 Global Maritime Security Conference, as it would help to consolidate the GMSC gains.
The SOAN helmsman urged the Federal Government to rejuvenate shipping in the country through appropriate policies, and implored investors to participate in the November conference, saying the brainstorming sessions would concretise the investment foundation for the orchestrated Blue Ocean Economy, hence a place for every investor.
Similarly, SOAN’s First Vice President, Eno Williams, noted that the conference would also enable shipping stakeholders to further and more effectively tackle the maritime security, particularly in the Niger Delta, in addition to ridiculously high Customs Duty, since key decision makers from the relevant departments, parastatals and government agencies would be represented.
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