• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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BusinessDay

The need for more professionalism in Nigeria’s transportation sector

transportation sector

The sustainability and the efficiency of the transport system of any successful nation depend hugely on the quality of human resources that run the system. Transportation management systems in Nigeria faces many human resources challenges which tend to scuttle the energy and efforts channelled towards growth and development. The challenges of a sustainable transport system in Nigeria are enormous, but the most challenging are those seen as human resources challenges which are meant to drive the ideas, plans and vision to fulfilment. A large percentage of all failures in transportation are traceable to human resources failures and solving this challenge is a sure way of bringing permanent solutions and sustainability to the transport system.

Human resources management in any society or nation is central to the progress of such society. It is more than just hiring and employing people; it is more about direction, management of human assets , making strategic plans for the future, nurturing of human talent to maximize the potentials fully to the benefits of the society and to themselves. The purpose of transport planning and research is to secure the best use of natural and acquired advantages which needs highly trained professionals that can design transport network facilities while considering the environment, the laws and the economy. Deficiencies in the supply of these professionals will hinder the process of development in the transport sector.

Sustainability and growth in the transport sector of any nation depends on the level and structure of human resources development available within such society such as transport planners, educational institutions and facilities ,economists, engineers, trainers, policies and laws which can stimulate growth and development through meaningful participation by individuals and government in this sector. The need for transport professionals trained specifically for the management of transport systems in the different modes is very exigent, because transportation performs optimally in an organized state. All transport systems irrespective of the level of the perfect arrangement of its design will fail unless it is managed and operated in a civilized state with modern technology operated by well trained personnel with defined rules and regulations. The laws of such society have to come first as the foundation for the transport laws to operate. This also is required in the formulation of the policies that govern the sector.

In Nigeria, trained personnel are needed in the formulation of policies required to operate transport services at local, state and federal levels. The directors of transport, commissioners for transport, state and federal house of assemblies committee members of transport, special advisers to Governors and the President, the Minister of Transportation have to be fully informed and carried along to be able to make the right inputs into the transport policies and when all these are rightly done with professionals who are well informed of the latest trends and information globally on modern transport systems, it will go a long way to foster development and sustainability.

The importance of training in the growth of the transport sector cannot be over emphasized. This provides for continuity in all fields of human endeavours and as such in all modes within the transport systems. Training provides a means of transferring skills and knowledge so that they do not end with the carriers of such knowledge. Sustainability requires the skills to be acquired, improved upon, adopted and implemented in such environment.

All players in the transport sector needs various types of training for improved efficiency of the system and for self improvement and are expected to also give training to those under their supervision as a way of fostering sustainability and development within the transport system.

Transportation institutions and training centres are fundamental structures needed in any nation that desires to achieve and maximize its full potential in the growth and development of its economy through better transportation systems, adequate pool of manpower are needed and required to achieve such goals and objectives. Highly skilled and specialized professionals in this sector are also needed to conduct research, construct, maintain and operate the transport infrastructures and services.

The success of any transport policy depends on the human resources available within the sector to develop and implement the policies. Some examples of government transport organisations and institutions for professional trainings and skill acquisitions are the Nigerian institute of transport technology Zaria charged with training middle level management staff, the Nigerian Maritime Academy Oron and school of oceanography Lagos charged with the training of seafarers, the Nigerian college of Aviation Technology Zaria, which trains pilots and air crew, Federal University of Technology Owerri, Imo State, which offers Transportation Management Technology to the Doctorate level, Federal University of Technology Minna, Niger State also offers transport courses. All the above institutions and training centres needs upgrade, modern facilities and more funding for them to be able to discharge their statutory responsibilities more efficiently and effectively.

A draft national transport policy was produced in 2004 as a result of the desire of our local shipping operators to protect themselves against the excessive competition and dominance of their foreign counterparts which necessitated the enactment of cabotage Act which became enforceable or effective on May 2004. Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Nigerian Ports Authority(NPA), Federal Airports Authority Of Nigeria(FAAN),Nigeria Railway Corporation(NRC), Federal Road Safety Commission(FRSC) are some of the structured establishments set up to implement and sustain the government policies in the transport sector.

Nigeria is truly in need of trained transport personnel and professionals in all the various modes across the transport sector with skills on modern information technology needed to bring about the necessary upgrade and growth in our transport system.

One of the ways of dealing with the current trend of lack of professionalism in our nation’s transport sector is by involving transport experts and professionals in the decision making process, formulation of policies and laws within the sector, encouraging professionalism within the transport system. Most of the leaders at the helm of affairs in our transport sector holding key and strategic positions have very little or no knowledge about the sector. In fact most of the chairmen of transport committees in our transport system have no transport qualifications and never attended any training within or outside the country. The same old or obsolete ways of managing the sector in the 80’s is what is been used until date and we expect to get different results? Until we adopt modern approach and global standard of operations, we will continue to rock bottom and get lower results.

The human resources challenges in Nigeria’s transport sector are enormous. We need more participation of private sector organizations in the area of human resources development and manpower training. We have very few organization in this area unlike the first world economy where their governments ensure modern structures are in place to encourage private organization participation in the engine room of producing professionals with modern skills to drive growth within the system.

A good number of the transport management technology graduates from our nation’s transportation higher institutions never get employment from any of our transport establishment across all the modes simply because they have nobody of influence to recommend them for employment and so they are frustrated to take up employment elsewhere ‘to keep body and soul together’. It is high time government at all levels look inwards by appointing professionals with the right skills and knowledge in transportation to sensitive positions within the sector for them to set the system in the right direction as it is done globally for us to achieve optimal and higher results that will lead to improvement in our nation’s GDP, create more employment opportunities and stimulate the needed growth in our economy.

 

FESTUS OKOTIE