• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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FG bemoans job losses to absence of national shipping line

NISA Shipping Line to create 50,000 seafaring jobs, billions in revenue

The Federal Government says the Nigerian maritime sector is losing shipping and insurance jobs to foreign-owned companies due to the absence of a national shipping line to handle domestic seaborne trade.

Gbemisola Saraki, minister of state for transportation, stated this at the 16th edition of the maritime seminar for judges, which opened in Abuja on Tuesday. The three-day event is organised by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) in collaboration with National Judicial Institute.

Represented by Hussein Adamu, director of procurement, federal ministry of transportation, Saraki said in view of this, the establishment of a national fleet has become imperative.

“There is a need for capacity building in the maritime industry. Most of our maritime transportation is conducted by foreign ship owners, thereby limiting the economic benefits accruable to the nation and the sub-region in areas such as the creation of jobs through freight and insurance earnings,” she said.

According to her, the present administration is looking into ways of encouraging the establishment of a private sector-driven national shipping line to ensure maximum exploitation of the potential in the maritime industry.

“A ministerial committee has been working on this important initiative and we look forward to having their concrete recommendations for immediate implementation,” the minister said.

Saraki, however, urged the judicial system to ensure speedy and efficient dispensation of maritime matters by the courts because, in international commercial transactions, time is money and important.

This seminar, she said, creates a forum where eminent jurists and legal luminaries can rub minds on how to enhance the competitiveness and economic viability of the maritime industry.

While declaring the seminar open, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, the acting chief justice of Nigeria, said the maritime law in Nigeria, which is a specialised area, has witnessed novel developments in the recent past.

Read also: Maritime agencies enter agreement to automate internal processes

Ariwoola noted that the development has taken into consideration the importance of the maritime industry, as conventions like the Hamburg Rules as well as the enactment of important legislations like the Merchant Shipping Act have ensured speedy adjudication of maritime disputes before the courts.

He, however, urged the National Judicial Institute to deepen the collaborative engagement with the Shippers’ Council to aid the course of justice and enhance quick dispensation of justice in Admiralty matters.

Earlier, Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour (rtd), the chairman of the occasion, said Nigerian ports needed to be fully automated to enhance the ease of doing business for consignees.

According to him, automation has the potential to eradicate corruption and other negative activities in the maritime sector.

“Corruption is a major bane of development and is counterproductive to maximising productivity and efficiency. Stakeholders must ensure that all hands are on deck to get rid of any fraudulent and corrupt practices in the industry.

Corruption militates against development. It increases the cost of doing business, limits economic growth, negatively impacts social wellbeing, destroys and distorts processes and procedures, robs the government of legitimate revenue and gives the country a bad image globally,” Rhodes-Vivour added.