Maritime industry stakeholders especially indigenous ship owners have called for timely disbursement of the monies accumulated in the long awaited Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) to enable shipping development.
Ship owners, who commended the appointment of Bashir Jamoh as the new director general of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), believed the new DG would bring development, success to the industry especially due to his vast knowledge of the industry.
Recall that Jamoh was on Wednesday appointed DG of NIMASA by President Muhammadu Buhari to replace the outgoing DG, Dakuku Peterside, whose 4-year tenure has elapsed.
Jamoh, who doubles as the current president of the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration (CIoTA) has spent close to 30 years in the maritime industry.
The CVFF was established alongside the Nigerian Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act of 2003, to empower indigenous ship owners to take control of the nation’s coastal and inland shipping business, otherwise known as Cabotage trade.
Sadly, 17 year after, the Federal Government is yet to apply the over $200 million accumulated in the fund into the acquisition of vessels, which was the real reason for setting it up.
Greg Ogbeifun, former president, Shipowners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), described the choice of Jamoh as good development for the industry.
He urged Jamoh to ensure the timely disbursement of CVFF and to also use his wealth of experience to build indigenous capacity as well as address challenges of maritime security in Nigeria’s maritime domain.
“He should conclude the issue of CVFF which has just been initiated. The CVFF is an issue that has been on the drawing board for a long time and finally a committee has been set up by the Minister of Transportation to review the guideline. So, he should quickly step into that and make that a reality. That way he would have the support of the entire maritime sector,” he added.
On maritime security, he stated that Jamoh is an expert in the issue of maritime security and would articulate an effective solution to the lingering maritime security issue that is making Nigerian waters very unsafe for international shipping.
“The issue of capacity development both in human capacity and infrastructure are platform that are critical to actualising the pillars of the Cabotage Act,” he said.
According to him, “It is a rare opportunity to have somebody who has been in the system over a couple of decades, without needing to be tutored on the agency’s mandates. This is the first time a true insider is being appointed as the DG and that to me is a very good development. He definitely will have his own strategy on how to deliver on the mandate,” he said.
To him, Jamoh has taken his time to develop himself, career wise going by his profile, meaning that he has the practical experience as well as the field knowledge.
Aminu Umar, immediate ex-president of Nigerian Shipowners Association (NISA), who commended Jamoh’s appointment, stated that his presence in the outgoing management team will enable him to continue from where the past administration stopped.
“With Jamoh’s appointment, the presidency has put a round peg in a round hole and it is very different from bringing an outsider to start learning the industry. Jamoh has been in NIMASA for so long and as part of the management team of NIMASA, I believe he will continue from where Peterside stopped,” he said.
Kunle Folarin, chairman, Port Consultative Council (PCC), who expressed gladness over Jamoh’s appointment, said the industry has been pushing that an industry person rather than politicians be considered for the office of NIMASA DG.
Folarin expressed optimism that Jamoh’s appointment will help grow the industry to make it relevant not only in Nigeria but also globally.
