Nigerian Shippers’ Council: Making the Ports Working Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

The whole country is literally on lockdown as a result of the rampaging coronavirus scourge. The wheel of the economy is at best muted because of the pandemic.

Most industries in the public and organised private sectors are at best working on skeletal basis. The SME businesses are not spared of the painful lockdown.

But despite the lockdown, the port industry is still kept opened and busy.

Apart from those who are not providing essential services that were asked to work from home, the shipping industry, especially cargo clearing procedures are still going on.

The terminal operators, shipping companies, freight forwarders, Customs officers and other personnel who are directly or indirectly connected to cargo documentation and delivery process are still expected to keep the ports working.

However, the Federal Government merely made the pronouncement that ports should remain opened without considering the challenges that may hinder the process, especially those that may make it opened but not working.

It was the Nigeria Shippers’ Council, the industry economic regulator, that eventually keeps the wheel of the ports turning.

The efforts of the Council, since the lockdown started, have significantly kept the port industry, especially cargo clearance procedures, moving.

Despite its cash donation to support the fight against the pandemic, the Council took proactive steps which have a profound impact on the operations in the industry.

The Executive Secretary of the Council, Barrister Hassan Bello, is literally on his feet daily, shuttling among the major stakeholders, sensitising and engaging them on the need to put all hands on the deck to keep the ports working.

Apart from that, the Council provided free transportation to freight forwarders who would have been stranded due to movement restriction.

Bello also engaged relevant authorities in a bid to ensure that freight forwarders are not caught in the snare of the overzealous security agents deployed to enforce the movement restriction.

He also begged the duties collecting banks to open their doors for freight forwarders to enable them pay relevant Customs duties and charges.

These efforts, so far, have ensured that goods are cleared from the ports with minimum hitches.

It will be an understatement to say we are impressed by the proactive efforts of the Nigeria Shippers’ Council and the unwavering passion of its Executive Secretary to ensure that the ports not only stay open but working.

While the Federal government made the ports stay open through its proclamation, the Shippers Council ensures that the ports are working.

We have never been in doubt of the competence and commitment of Barrister Bello as an unrepentant stickler to trade facilitation.

He has doggedly deployed these rare attributes to transform the Council from its initial docile and irritating sluggish attitude to a vibrant, dynamic and proactive port economic regulator.

This energetic and irrepressible port administrator has further endeared himself to many industry stakeholders by the dexterity he has displayed so far to keep the port working.

We are pleased by the deep understanding of which Bello had and exhibited about the crucial economic importance of a vibrant port industry and the grave implications it would impact on the economy if operations in this vital sector are muted.

Bello was so passionate that he told all the stakeholders the danger a muted port industry will pose to the economic well-being of the country which he rightly said would be more catastrophic than the impact of the ravaging coronavirus.

We commend the Shipper Council and its highly mobile and versatile Executive Secretary in their efforts to ensure that the human impediments against functional port system in times of emergency like this are being frontally tackled.

However, we believe that if our port operations have before now been automated, it would have saved Bello and his colleagues at the Council these sleepless nights they are having to ensure the ports work.

An automated port industry would have saved the Council the hazzles and huge financial implications of providing logistics for freight Forwarders to physically come to clear their cargo at the ports.

Under an automated system, this would not have been necessary because all the documentation, payment and other axillary activities would have been done electronically in the comfort of their homes.

Even, physical examination of cargo by Customs would have been outdated.

Nevertheless, these challenges do not distract from the laudable efforts of the Shippers Council and Bello to keep the ports working in this trying period of coronavirus pandemic.