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  • NPA MD seeks global support for National Single Window’s take-off at ports

    NPA MD seeks global support for National Single Window’s take-off at ports

    The Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Abubakar Dantsoho, on Friday, October 11, sought the support and technical synergy of the leaders of the global maritime and shipping community towards the Federal Government’s plan for the take-off of the National Single Window (NSW) project at the various ports to facilitate quick cargo clearance and export of goods across the country.

    A single window is an organic mixture of parties in a nation’s international trade. It uses the latest information communications technology (ICT) techniques, international data, and messaging standards together with simplified, harmonised and remodelled information systems for data exchange to replace traditional paper-based information

    Speaking at the ongoing World Ports Conference 2024 taking place in Hamburg-Germany, Dantsoho highlighted the potential of the NSW project to enhance the diversification efforts of the federal government to boost port efficiency, eliminate human interface in international trade, and boost the economy.

    The implementation of a single window project, findings revealed, enables international (cross-border) traders to submit regulatory documents at a single location and/or single entity. Such documents, it was learnt, are typically customs declarations, applications for import/export permits, and other supporting documents, such as certificates of origin and trading invoices.

    No wonder, Dantsoho emphasised at the conference, the importance of international cooperation as Nigeria accelerates the deployment of the NSW at ports.

    The lack of implementation of a single window platform is reportedly costing Nigeria N1.08 trillion in revenue yearly.

    According to Dantsoho: “The renewed vigour with which Nigeria is accelerating the implementation of the National Single Window project will in fundamental terms deepen port efficiencies by eliminating human interface that hitherto undermines In-Country trade facilitation efforts, requires intensified international technical support to meet and indeed exceed global expectations.”

    Dantsoho also commended the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola’s policy support, which he said, propelled NPA’s finalisation of the crucial phase of the Port Community System (PCS), which is the precursor to the National Single Widow project.

    The PCS is seen as a vital step towards achieving full implementation of the NSW and improving overall port operations across the country.

    Read Also: NPA MD Dantsoho appoints seven new port managers

    Responding to the call made by the President of the International Association of Ports & Harbors (IAPH), Mr. Jens Meier, for the ports to actively collaborate on knowledge sharing and the need for the maritime community to accelerate decarbonisation, Dantsoho said:

    “The NPA is fully aligned and we were deliberate at ensuring that our ongoing Port Modernisation programme is guided by the imperatives of eco-friendliness.”

    The 2024 IAPH World Ports Conference which is themed “Managing Risk, Building Resilience and Unlocking Opportunities at Ports” commenced on 8th October in Hamburg, Germany, brought together leaders in the global port community to share ideas necessary to face the realities of an epoch of unprecedented upheaval and opportunity

  • World-class transport system coming, says NPA MD

    The Federal Government is to evolve a world-class transport system that will position the seaports as a hub in West and Central Africa.

    Speaking after the Intermodal Freight Transport Conference hosted by The Nation in Abuja, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Ms Hadiza Bala Usman said the government would establish a safe, efficient, affordable and seamless intermodal transport system in line with global best practices. She canvassed an enabling environment for Public-Private Partnership (PPP).

    The promotion of inter-modalism, she said, envisaged, among others, the connection of all state capitals, seaports, airports and river ports with railway lines to complement the road infrastructure across the country.

    According to her, the NPA supports the hosting of the conference and other initiatives as a reflection of the Federal Government’s efforts and determination to showcase the programmes and projects being undertaken by President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.

    The maritime sector, Ms Usman said, remains a key sector of the economy, adding that its enormous potential deserves continuous harnessing to meet the government’s expectations and that of the people.

    “Over the last two years, NPA has been carrying out a number of reform measures aimed at enhancing the operational efficiency in the various ports. For instance, we have identified some issues and challenges that are necessitating intermodal freight transport, which include the following:

    • The “stand alone” transport planning and management approach by government in the past, whereby budgetary allocations in the transport sector over the years neither prioritised modal integration nor considered transport development from modal comple-mentarities point of view;
    • Over the last 10 years, the container throughput in Nigerian seaports has grown by over 100 per cent while the gross tonnage has grown by over 200 per cent and in recent years export has grown by over 500 per cent;
    • A report credited to the West Africa Transport Union alleged that 60 per cent of trucks loading goods at the Lagos seaports do not get their products on time;
    • Apapa Port annual cargo is in excess of 10.9 million tons;
    • Heavy traffic impedes business at Apapa industries and Lagos Ports at Apapa and Tin Can Island;
    • Vehicles carrying heavy goods and poor drainage cause unstable road pavement;
    • Every 30 seconds a 20-30 tons loaded trailer leaves Apapa;
    • Every 80 seconds same trailer type leaves Tin Can Island;
    • Millions of containers enter Nigeria mainly through the Lagos Ports where inadequate logistics infrastructure to match these ever-growing imports has brewed a state of chaos within the Port and its environs;
    • Over 60 per cent of the containers and imported cargoes that arrive Lagos Ports exit Lagos for other parts of Nigeria Less than three per cent of the cargoes that arrive Apapa Ports are utilised within two square kilometers around the port, and
    • Over 3,000 trucks line up daily to enter Apapa Ports, making entry and exit an uphill task. Apapa environs have become a spot market for container haulage, creating a mayhem as all other access routes to and from the Ports are blocked by loitering trucks looking for spot hire.

    Other issues and challenges are:

    • That the Lagos Ports account for over 85 per cent of goods coming in and out of Nigeria;
    • Cargo throughput have increased from 37mil|ion metric tons to 84 million metric tons;
    • Absence of rail links to the ports. Poorly developed inland waterways;
    • The failure of the pipeline mode of transport, which resulted into increasing construction of clusters of tank farms within the port environment;
    • Increase in Private sector demand for water front infrastructure and port land;
    • Global changing trend of increase in container freight;
    • The effect of port city on the port and port access;
    • Ship owners’ response to economy of scale by acquiring larger and deep drafts vessels, hence the demand for deeper channels, bigger berthing infrastructure and modern cargo handling gear (construction of deep sea port);
    • Port financing policy review (PPP);
    • Port optimal and strategic utilisation and
    • Envisaged Diversification of the nation’s economy away from oil.

    Some of the notable benefits associated with inter modal freight transport as identified by Ms Usman include seamless door-to-door transport; possibility of transporting goods more economically in containers that can be moved on land by rail or truck and on water by ship or barge; the movement of bulk commodities in inter modal freight transport and the enhancement of efficiency and integration within the supply chain, which can be transformed into improvements in cost, quality of service and delivery times.

     

  • NPA MD seeks infrastructure development

    Nigeria can become a hub of maritime operations in West and Central Africa by developing port infrastructure and facilities, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director, Ms Hadiza Bala Usman has said.

    In an interview, Ms Usman said it was imperative for the NPA and the Federal Government to develop port infrastructure and promote the industry so the country could benefit from the increasing cargo traffic across the globe. The new initiative on the review of the concession agreement, she said, would be designed to meet the logistics needs of the industry in anticipation of future development.

    Folas Motors Chairman, Mr Felix Owoeye,  called on the government to support the NPA and other agencies in funding researches, saying the sector lacked in-depth investigation due to poor funding.

    “The maritime industry has experienced an appreciable development in recent years. That development is set to stay. World trade continues to shift global markets and production lines make new demands on transport systems and on ports in particular.

    ‘‘Ports serve the national interest, supporting the competitiveness of national and regional economies. It is in the nation’s interest that our ports remain able to handle cargo trade and its potential development efficiently and sustainably,” he said. The industry, according to Owoeye, is in dire need of reforms.

    “New port facilities would help to bring the industry to international standards.”

    He lamented that previous administrations, like most practitioners in the industry, did not live by the rules guiding the profession, which, he said, had resulted in many problems in the sector.

    “The maritime industry requires reforms; reform by way of standardising, educating, informing, sanitising the practice and making it global because the mere mention of the words import and export trade means we are not doing it locally, but across borders. Therefore, there are set rules, information and knowledge that operators must possess.

    Owoeye added that the industry has project for rapid and sustainable growth. “Based on this development and the strategic position Nigeria occupy in the industry and the sub-region for the development of human capital for an enhanced economy, it is expected of the government to train our youth to develop interest in maritime education,” the importer said.

    To meet the manpower requirement for the nation’s fleet, Owoeye canvassed robust, consistent, versatile and dynamic maritime policies, which are in tandem with global issues to ensure efficiency. He lamented that the country, despite its huge population, has no standard maritime institute compared to countries, such as the Philippines, which he said, has over 40 maritime academies.

    The Philippines, he said, supplies over 30 per cent of the world’s seafarers’ requirement. He noted that the Philippines earn over $1.6 billion from reparation from seafarers.

     

  • NPA MD to workers: better days ahead

    The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Ms Hadiza Bala Usman has assured  workers of better condition of service.

    Addressing the workers in Lagos, she advised them to be dedicated in the discharge of their duty.

    Over 550 workers from across the country were honoured during the ceremony.

    About 530 recipients of them got the company’s long service award, seven, merit awards and 30 fire  men for their gallantry in putting out a fire in Port Harcourt port.

    She thanked the awardees and other workers  for their contributions to the authority’s growth.

    “In spite of the outlook of the economy at the beginning of this year,  the management of the authority set out certain goals and objectives for itself and we are grateful that we have attained most of the goals that we set for ourselves.

    “Right from the outset, management was conscious of the fact that none of these objectives would be attainable without the understanding and cooperation of the workforce. This is the main reason  we have maintained an open door policy, which has made it possible for all of us to rub minds and agree on the best way to achieve the very important task of repositioning port operations in Nigeria or better efficiency.

    “On behalf of the management, I want to thank you, our colleagues for keeping faith with us. While we are not at the place where we hope to be, we are certainly not where we started from. I take the rare opportunity to commend you for your commitment to serve and all the sacrifices that you all have to make.

    “Someone said the reward for hard work is more work; at the NPA, we know that this not the exact situation. There is, of course, always more work for us because we want to improve on our last performance, never resting on our oars, but can also assure you that welfare will continue to be of utmost priority to us,” she said.

    In his address, its Executive Director Finance and Administration, Mr Mohammed Bello-Koko, urged the workers to be more dedicated to their duty as the management has resolved to priotise staff welfare, next year.

    One of the awardees and the Port Manager Calabar Port, Mrs Funmilayo Olotu, who spoke on behalf of  others, expressed gratitude to the management for promoting staff welfare and thanked Ms Usman for operating an open door policy since her assumption of duties.

     

  • Our plans for a world class ports system, by NPA MD

    Our plans for a world class ports system, by NPA MD

    The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Ms Hadiza Bala Usman, plans to turn the country’s ports to some of the best in the world. She spoke at the National Ports Reforms Conference in Lagos  facilitated yesterday by The Nation, Federal Ministry of Transportation and Epsilon Limited. Her presentation:

    THE strategic role of ports in economic development is that they function as gateways to international trade and, accordingly are regarded as major accelerators of local economic development.

    According to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Netherlands has been able to sustain a relatively high economic growth rate because of the Port of Rotterdam, in spite of the  intensely competitive environment in Europe. The success of Singapore is equally attributed to the Port of Singapore which has developed a transport logistic centre and has successfully been able to attract foreign investment.

    It is thereby acknowledged that the maritime sector, an essential component t of the transportation system, is crucial for wealth creation.

    However, a Port becomes an active wheel of an economy only if it is run efficiently. One of the key areas of efficiency that our Ports require is the national single window. I am pleased to announce that the Authority and the Nigerian Customs Service have concluded the operational model for establishing the National single window and will in the next few months commence with the public tender process of selecting the vendors that will deploy the required information technology infrastructure.

    Presently the function of a port is not only limited to the traditional activities but has expanded to a logistical platform. Ports not only perform the basic operations (embarking, disembarking and transferring of passengers and crew, loading, unloading and transshipment of cargo to and from the vessels, storage and warehousing of merchandise on land and stevedoring to and from vessels),  they provide inland access and internmodal connections as well as complementary services to shipping carriers.

    A Port is also a place for the provision of services, which add value to the products transported and thus helps the increasing demand of trade. For example, bulk fertiliser is bagged, bulk wheat is milled and used to produce various flour based products, etc in our port terminals. There are also oil and gas logistics bases where value is added to project cargo before they taken to offshore locations for deployment.

    Given the abundant mineral and agricultural resources available in most regions of Nigeria and the desire of the Federal Government to diversify the economy, the need to adequately explore the Port sector as a road to boosting economic development in Nigeria cannot be over-emphasized.

    The Federal Government under President Mohammadu Buhari has identified Agriculture and Solid Minerals as upbeat and the Maritime Industry will play a pivotal role in movement of these produce and minerals. In February this year, all terminal operators and shipping companies were mandated by the Nigerian Ports Authority to set up fast-track desks export of  solid minerals and agricultural  produce. Process of review of associated existing procedures and protocols has been commenced to ensure efficiency and intended results are achieved.

    For the Nigerian Ports to play this key role in the economy an efficient rail system will be needed in moving agricultural produce and solid mineral from the locations of production that are usually in the hinterlands to the seaports for export.

    The Federal Ministry of Transportation has embarked on a US$2 billion concession rail project to the handled by General Electric which will provide the needed intermodal support. It will cover about 3,500km (2,200 miles) of existing narrow gauge lines from the South Western commercial capital, Lagos to Kano in the North and South Eastern oil hub, Port Harcourt, to Maiduguri in the North-East.

    We are already recording increase in export of agricultural produce. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, in its Trade Intensity Index Report for the Q3,2016, export of frozen shrimps and prawns for the period July to September were worth over N5billion; Sasame seed export was worth over N4.8billion in the same period; income from cashew export exceeded N2billion; Soya beans yielded over N4billion; Ginger contributed over US$30million

    Developing the ports in very crucial for realizing the lofty but achievable development objectives of the Federal Government. Our Port Infrastructure like the quay walls and aprons would need to be reconstructed and reinforced to make them fit to  handle anticipated heavy solid mineral cargo. For agricultural produce, we would need specialized and refrigerated warehouses etc. The channels must be constantly dredged and maintained the deep seaports must be developed to address the dynamics in trade and transport demand.

    Improved Port infrastructure will bring about improved Port activities, which would stimulate economic growth and in turn would impact positively on the economy.

    I would like to stress in addition that several businesses derive from activities in the Ports. Trade has constantly been one of the crucial pillars of remunerations since prehistoric times. The Port sector is a huge employer of labour, directly or indirectly. Experts say the shipping sector, which is a part of the Port system has the potential to generate about 80,000 jobs annually. There exist several opportunities inherent in the Port business and it is a very welcome development that the economic importance of the seaports has been brought to light. This is a good take off point for what should follow.

    I will conclude by expressing my excitement and great optimism for the envisaged strategic role the ports have begun to play in Nigeria’s economic development agenda. I want to state that Nigerian Ports Authority is committed to delivering what is expected of it and in line with globally accepted standards.