NIMASA to spend N71 billion on maritime projects in 2019.

The Director General of the apex maritime agency, Dr. Dakuku Peterside made the  disclosure when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Marine and Transport in Abuja,

Dakuku expatriates that out of the total budgeted sum, the agency would spend N20.1 billion on employment, N24 billion for overhead expenses while N17.6 was earmarked for capital projects.

He added that maritime fund projects, would gulp whooping N71.01 billion.

“In the year under consideration, NIMASA expects that our total budgeted revenue will be N112.1 billion. That’s the total budgeted revenue for 2019.

“Out of this total budgeted revenue, on personnel emolument, we proposed to spend N20.1 billion.

“Overhead will account for N24 billion. For capital expenditure, which will be basically to fund ongoing maritime projects, it will cost N17. 6 billion.

“And for the maritime fund projects, it will cost N71.01 billion.

On the agency’s remittance to the creation account, Peterside enthused that his administration has done better than the previous ones.

“Mr Chairman, distinguished senators, our contribution to the consolidated revenue fund has consistently been on the increase in the past few years.

“In 2018, we contributed a total of N22. 9 billion. This is the highest ever contribution coming from NIMASA from it inception till date.

“It will interest the distinguished senators to know that in the past three years, our contribution to the consolidated revenue fund has surpassed every known record before now,” he said.

He said the agency, in the year 2019, would be focusing on closing out all ongoing projects.

“We will also pay special attention to maritime safety as we prepare for the IMO elections,” he said.

The agency boss said NIMASA would continue to give priority attention to maritime security which has been a challenge for some time.

“We are prioritising our interventions under a programme called the Deep Blue Project which was conceptualised to provide an integrated national surveillance and waterway protection solution with a command and control infrastructure in the country which will see us purchasing a number of special mission aircraft, helicopters for intervention, armoured vehicles for intervention, etc,’’he said.

Peterside told the committee that the agency did not want the country to be known as hot spot of piracy ”which is the challenge we are facing now.”

“So we are paying very serious attention to the area of maritime security,” he remarked.