Group commends Shippers’ Council for keeping the ports working during COVID-19  lockdown.

Segun Oladipupo    |   

Advocacy for Maritime Development Association of Nigeria, has commended the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) for the roles it played during the peak of lockdown owing to Covid-19.

The group on Tuesday also sought partnership with the Council on information sharing on port operations.

President of the group, Mr Oluwasegun Alabi, gave the commendation during a courtesy visit to the Council on Monday.

Recall that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council facilitated the movement of freight forwarders to the port for clearance of cargo during the lockdown resulting from Covid-19 pandemic.

The group lauded the Hassan Bello-led management of the Council, saying the management did the unthinkable during the peak of the COVID19 lockdown by providing buses for maritime stakeholders,.

It added that the action was unprecedented in the history of the industry even as it said that the intervention came at the right time.

The group’s President affirmed that the Council was strategic in ensuring the sustainability of port efficiency and the seamless flow of cargoes in and out of the seaport during the period.

Alabi stated that the ports in Lagos would have experienced congestion, delay in cargo clearance and additional cost of cargo clearance but that the council was able to make the process seamless during the lockdown.

He also assured that the advocacy group would work closely with the port economic regulatory agency on information sharing on port activities to move the sector forward.

“I want to thank NSC for its remarkable faith and intervention during the covid months,  its supportive weight behind the waiver granted during that time also reporting some companies and terminals that did not comply and the provision of buses for maritime workers as palliative.  

“I admire the courage of the management  team of Shippers Council and we want to say that partnership in the area of information exchange is key  because advocacy members are daily movers of cargo and are usually on ground at the port to assist with information. 

“We also promise to work with the council to actualize  government policy on ease of doing business,” he added.

 Hassan Bello, Executive Secretary of the Council said  the Council was delighted to receive the team even as he promised to work with the group.

Bello enumerated some of the challenges the Council faced and the uncompetitiveness of the shipping companies  and terminal operators both in their billing and service delivery. 

The Council’s boss reiterated the constraints faced by the economic regulator in terms of legal tussle between the NSC and shipping companies which according to him, it is still pending at the Supreme court.

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