Nigeria can grow its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by $5.42 billion with the increased participation of Nigerian-owned ships in the global trade, experts have said.
Greg Ogbeifun, chairman of the board of directors of Starzs Investment Company Limited, disclosed this while presenting a paper titled ‘Overcoming Challenges against Re-Emergence of Global Shipping Lines: The Nigerian Perspective,’ at the 16th Marine Technical Summit organised by the Association of Marine Engineers and Surveyors (AMES) in Lagos last week.
Ogbeifun said Nigeria will also witness an upturn of $9.1 billion in freight revenue annually, and a $1.62 billion contribution to corporate income tax if it returns to global trading.
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According to him, Nigeria spends about $9.2 billion annually on freight charges paid to foreign shipping companies, constituting a significant outflow of foreign exchange and contributing to the weakening of the naira.
“Establishing a shipping fleet would enable Nigeria to retain a substantial portion of this revenue within the country, strengthening its economy and reducing dependence on foreign currency,” he said.
He said having shipping lines that participate in continental shipping, would lead to an increase in the country’s FDI, resulting in a 7 percent increase in the country’s income by 2043.
Ogbeifun said developing a fleet would necessitate investment in shipbuilding and repair yards and stimulate the Nigerian steel industry and engineering sector.
“Government must provide the enabling business environment to encourage private sector buy-in to ensure that Nigeria regains control over the carriage of her import and export cargoes, while also restoring the nation to her rightful place among the comity of maritime nations,” he said.
Emmanuel Ihenacho, executive chairman of Integrated Oil and Gas Limited, said developing the Nigerian shipping fleet would boost the nation’s export trade.
He said the lack of Nigerian shipping lines has denied the country significant import and export cargo volumes despite its geographical advantages and huge opportunities.
“If Nigeria wants to develop a fleet that people would respect, it needs to understand the market context, understand service delivery, and learn the terms of trade,” he said.
Also speaking, Patrick Eigbe, head of Maritime Safety and Seafarers Standard at NIMASA, who represented the Director General of NIMASA, said Nigeria needs to promote the participation of Nigerians in domestic and international commercial shipping.
Eigbe said the drive to ensure the development of an adequate number of maritime manpower to work onboard foreign vessels as well as meet the manning requirement of domestic vessels is in line with the vision of the Coastal and Inland Shipping Acts 2023.
He said seafarers play a crucial role in the maritime industry and the government’s contribution to their development is essential.
Earlier, Israel Obadan, president of AMES, expressed dissatisfaction with the current state of shipping in the country, especially the lack of single-digit interest loans for operators and the dearth of qualified engineers and master mariners.
He said the association-initiated plans to have training arrangements with the NIMASA and Dangote Refinery for marine engineers, emphasising seatime.
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